Milan:Torino are pushing for a first-ever qualification for the Champions League as they face local rivals Juventus on the eve of the 70th anniversary of the air disaster that wiped out their all-conquering team of the 1940s.
Eighteen Torino players and officials were among 31 people killed in the accident on May 4, 1949, when their plane crashed into the Superga hill near Turin. The ‘Grande Torino’ team, returning from a match against Benfica in Lisbon, had won the Serie A title five seasons in a row but won it just once after the crash, in 1976. Juve meanwhile have racked up 35 titles and recently secured their eighth in a row. Now they are closing in on the Champions League after a fine season that culminated last weekend with their first win over AC Milan since 2001, which put them just three points from the top four. “We mustn’t think about the Champions League, what we need to do is to keep cool,” said Torino president Urbano Cairo after the win. “In this final rush it is very important to be consistent. We now have to think about next Friday and an extremely important game against Juventus. “The race for Europe is still wide open, but I saw a very determined Torino.”
Torino have not won at Juventus since 1995 with their only win since then against their city rivals at home in April 2015. Juventus hopes of equalling their points record of 102 from the 2014 season were ended after last weekend’s 1-1 draw against Inter Milan. (AFP)
