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Juventus’ Predicted XI vs Sampdoria: Federico Chiesa to be benched?

By Jyotirmoy Halder

LA SPEZIA, ITALY - SEPTEMBER 22: Federico Chiesa of Juventus in action during the Serie A match between Spezia Calcio v Juventus at Stadio Alberto Picco on September 22, 2021 in La Spezia, Italy. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)
LA SPEZIA, ITALY - SEPTEMBER 22: Federico Chiesa of Juventus in action during the Serie A match between Spezia Calcio v Juventus at Stadio Alberto Picco on September 22, 2021 in La Spezia, Italy. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images) /
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The whirlwind of ceaseless fixtures keeps coming, with Juventus hosting Sampdoria next at Allianz Stadium on Sunday. It’s an early kick-off, with Massimiliano Allegri expected to make several alterations to sustain the traditional norm of squad rotation for the weekend’s game.

Juventus secured their first victory in Serie A this season by beating Spezia 3-2 in midweek. Although the scoreline might look captivating, Juve’s collective performance was far from it. This weekend, they will be on the hunt for their first home victory.

Sampdoria faced a gruelling 4-0 defeat to Napoli on Thursday evening. As a result, both Sampdoria and Juve, playing five games so far, have added the same amount of points (five) to their tally. Going into the sixth round of Serie A 2021/22 hence, it will be a face-off between the 12th (Juventus) and 13th-positioned teams (Sampdoria) this weekend.

Juventus’ predicted XI for the Sampdoria game

Several reports have already claimed that both teams could make some changes to their respective line-ups, giving the fresh legs some chances and also rotating the squad in the process. It is understood that Allegri will continue his journey with 4-4-2 formation. That said, here is how the five-time Scudetto winner with Juventus could field his team against Sampdoria.

Goalkeeper & Defenders

Mattia Perin, Juventus  (Photo by Marco Canoniero/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Mattia Perin, Juventus  (Photo by Marco Canoniero/LightRocket via Getty Images) /

Mattia Perin (GK): The game against Sampdoria is believed to mark Mattia Perin’s first start for Juventus in a competitive match this season. Perin was on loan at Genoa last season. He made 32 Serie A starts there, kept eight clean sheets and recorded a save percentage of 75.5 (second-best in the league behind David Ospina’s 76.9), per FBref.com. Along with quite a few pre-season friendlies, he had an appearance in Juve’s 3-0 defeat to Barcelona at Joan Gamper Trophy. It has been a topsy-turvy start to the season for Wojciech Szczęsny, who has already cost Juve some valuable points. An inspiring performance on Sunday would certainly emphasize Perin’s shot at the number one spot.

Mattia De Sciglio (RB): Naturally left-footed, De Sciglio spent last season on loan at Lyon, where he played 1,467 minutes of football in Ligue 1. De Sciglio was chosen to play as a left-back in the game against Spezia. Reliable more for his defensive aptitude, De Sciglio, however, was withdrawn right at the stroke of the half-time after failing to execute the tasks assigned to him by Allegri. This time, he might be thinking of utilising the full-back down the right. Danilo deserves some rest amid this hectic period, and the Italian seems to be the only viable replacement for the Brazilian.

Leonardo Bonucci (CB): Allegri will be looking to keep up the pace set by the Spezia win in the midweek. As such, it would be sensible for him to field the best defenders available. Apart from some sloppy errs here and there, Bonucci has looked decent in recent weeks and should be starting the game.

Matthijs de Ligt (CB): The saviour for Juventus on Wednesday, Matthijs de Ligt will surely be starting against Sampdoria. It is understood to be a huge season for the Dutchman. Since moving to Turin from Amsterdam, he has failed to improvise his potential. Scoring the goal to save Juve’s face against Spezia, De Ligt is now a hero-esque figure to the Juventus faithful. He could expect a warm welcome when he returns to Allianz Stadium on Sunday.

Alex Sandro (LB): Alex Sandro, once labelled as “finished” by some overenthusiastic Juventini, holds the baton of Juventus’ left-back position. With De Sciglio sitting deep and emulating the role of Danilo, Alex Sandro could find himself more advanced down the left once again. The Brazilian is the only senior left-back Juventus have at the moment. Against Spezia, he didn’t start the game but had to come onto the field in the second half after De Sciglio had failed to impress the manager with his attacking attributes.

Midfielders

Aaron Ramsey, Juventus  (Photo by Daniele Badolato – Juventus FC/Getty Images)
Aaron Ramsey, Juventus  (Photo by Daniele Badolato – Juventus FC/Getty Images) /

Juan Cuadrado (RM): Cuadrado wasn’t involved in the game against Spezia at all. Under Allegri, the veteran Columbian has got an advanced role at the right side of the midfield. When attacking, Juventus sense the presence of the versatile outlet more these days. Cuadrado should be one of the stars to make the starting line-up for Allegri’s side against Sampdoria this Sunday.

Aaron Ramsey (CM): At the start of the season, Aaron Ramsey was deployed as a regista by Allegri. It was surely unusual to see a box-to-box midfielder becoming so isolated in the heart of the midfield. Well, he might be back to start his second Serie A game this season on Sunday. If everything goes as planned, the Welshman will be replacing Rodrigo Bentancur, whose performance against Spezia was worthy of a four-out-of-ten rating.

Manuel Locatelli (CM): One of the first names on Allegri’s team sheet, Manuel Locatelli was rested for the game against Spezia. Yet, he had to come at the start of the second half, on the back of a horror show in the midfield conducted by a poor Bentancur. Locatelli is likely to return to the starting line-up as Juventus seem clueless without the attentive eyes of the former AC Milan midfielder.

Federico Bernardeschi (LM): Regarded as an outcast under the management of Andrea Pirlo, Federico Bernardeschi is dreaming of capturing a spot in the line-up under the supervision of Max Allegri. So far, it has only been only a bunch of cameos that we have seen from Italy’s European champion this season. In what would be an attempt to rotate the squad, Allegri might choose to bring Bernardeschi on the left-side of midfield instead of a struggling Adrien Rabiot, who, despite providing the assist for the Moise Kean goal on Wednesday, has been pretty tepid in his performances lately.

Forwards

Moise Kean, Juventus  (Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images)
Moise Kean, Juventus  (Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images) /

Moise Kean (CF): Signed from Everton in the summer transfer window of 2021, Moise Kean picked up his first Serie A goal since returning to Juventus in Wednesday’s 3-2 victory against Spezia. He broke the deadlock with a stubborn finish in the 28th-minute of the game. It was a striker’s finish. He will likely cut Allegri’s XI once again this weekend.

Alvaro Morata (CF): Morata has been one of the best players for Juventus thus far, already logging two goals and one assist for the Old Lady. Allegri is reportedly considering resting Paulo Dybala for the game against Sampdoria. If those claims are thought to be true, Morata will find himself partnering with Moise Kean up top.