It was Cristiano Ronaldo and only Cristiano Ronaldo who successfully bailed Juventus out with a spectacular brace against Udinese last Sunday. But will the Portuguese have to turn himself into the sole saviour of Juventus yet again this weekend? Or will others bearing the same crest on their chests as that of Ronaldo find some impetus and put up a collectively sound performance on Sunday? These are now million-dollar questions.
Juventus will host AC Milan in the Matchday 35 of Serie 2020-21 this Sunday. A position in the next season’s Champions League will be at the stake. Losing here would mean falling behind in the race. And hence, both teams will be looking to pocket all the three points available from the game.
Having played 34 matches, both clubs have acquired 69 points in their bags. But, with a goal difference of 15, Juventus sit 3rd and AC Milan occupy the spot below them on the table. Almost every team in Serie A has now four games left to play; only Lazio (currently 6th) and Torino (currently 15th) have one extra game in their hand.
Despite making a promising start to their 2021 calendar year, Juventus have been far from convincing with their performances of late. And the AC Milan game this weekend will pose an opportunity in front of them and their coach Andrea Pirlo to build up momentum following what can be called a lucky escape against Udinese a few days back.
Like Juventus, AC Milan haven’t had been at their very best recently. There will be chances for Juventus to show their mettle. However, they must not rely on the mistakes of others going into another pivotal Serie A match. They should create some chances by themselves as well. To do so, here are three AC Milan players who would require some extra attention from the Juve professionals on Sunday.
#3 Theo Hernández
You might be thinking why we have picked Theo Hernández over Gianluigi Donnarumma, who has been linked extensively with a move to Juventus this summer. Well, Theo Hernández is a bigger threat a the moment than the 22-year-old custodian. The former Real Madrid left-back has proved his attacking prowess time and time again for AC Milan.
He was the top scorer at the club during the first half of last season. He, quite unusually, finds himself in awkward goalscoring positions and never think twice before having a go at the target. His offensive runs will need an extra marker on him.
Recently playing as a right-midfielder, Juan Cuadrado would be an appropriate candidate to mark Hernández’s activities on the field. Furthermore, Juventus could use the absence of Theo Hernández from his designated position to catch AC Milan on break.
His gallops down the left-hand side of the pitch would vacate the respective berth. And should the position remain uncovered, Juventus’ unoccupied forward could make runs down the flank and at least try to initiate a high-speed counter-attack. Theo Hernández is the unpredictable part of the current AC Milan side. You wouldn’t know what you are going to get from him on the pitch until you see it. Consequently, we will have to wait to see it.