Juventus handed massive advantage as AS Roma miss their key man
Juventus have been reportedly handed a massive boost ahead of a crucial Serie A fixture against AS Roma this Saturday.
On that back of a 2-1 Coppa Italia semi-final victory in the midweek’s Derby d’Italia, Juventus will make a swift return to Serie A this weekend to host Paulo Fonseca’s AS Roma.
With 39 points from 19 games—one less than the current top-four occupants, Juventus sit 4th, just one place behind the Roma side. Consequently, a triumph on Saturday could see the Old Lady surmounting the Giallorossi on the points table.
As reported by Il Tempo (via Calciomercato), Roma is set to miss the presence of Chris Smalling for the mouth-watering clash this weekend. The former Manchester United man sustained an injury in their last week’s encounter against Hellas Verona.
In what was an awe-inspiring 3-1 victory for the Lupa, Smalling was substituted off in the 12th-minute of the game and got replaced by the young sensation Marash Kumbulla.
Juventus could be in store for another win this weekend
As far as the aforementioned story is concerned, Smalling might be out for around two more weeks, owing to a confirmed strain in his left thigh.
Should that be the case, there is no way the English centre-back is going to make the matchday squad on Saturday. Marash Kumbulla is likely to replace the 31-year-old in the starting eleven.
Since joining from Manchester United, Smalling has proved to be an integral part of the Giallorossi’s defence. This season, Smalling has played a total of 862 minutes of football in Serie A.
Losing him to an injury ahead of a game against the reigning champions would not only lessen Roma’s on-field proficiency but also disrupt their pre-game mentality.
Juventus still holding out hope for Paul Pogba. dark. Next
And therefore, Juventus could utilise their chances of demolishing their opponents both physically and psychologically. The Bianconeri have had lost just one game since the beginning of the new calendar year.
With Paulo Dybala being the only absentee for Juventus, Andreas Prilo’s men are seemingly favourites going into another mega clash.