After securing their first Serie A of the season away at Spezia in the week, Juventus host Sampdoria at Sunday lunchtime looking to build their momentum.
The Bianconeri were certainly made to work for their maiden domestic victory since Massimiliano Allegri’s return. Goals from Federico Chiesa and Matthijs de Ligt helped Juve overturn a 2-1 deficit in the second half.
While they remain a flawed unit, there’s hope that the midweek victory will ignite their campaign with a tough set of fixtures arriving in October.
Sampdoria, meanwhile, endured a topsy turvy week after drawing 2-2 with the champions. Last Sunday, they blitzed past Empoli 3-0 thanks to a Francesco Caputo brace before they felt the wrath of a rampant Napoli on Thursday. Victor Osimhen was once again among the goals in the 4-0 rout.
The two sides head into this one level on five points, although Juve’s slightly superior goal difference has them ahead in the table.
Here’s our preview of Sunday’s Serie A clash.
How to Watch Juventus vs Sampdoria
When is kick-off? Sunday 26 September
What time is kick-off? 11:30 (BST)
Where is it played? Allianz Stadium
TV channel/live stream? BT Sport 1, Paramount+
Juventus Team News
Focus now shifts to #JuveSamp 🏃💪
— JuventusFC 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@juventusfcen) September 23, 2021
Massimiliano Allegri could make several changes to his starting XI for Sunday’s clash after a busy couple of weeks following the international break. Manuel Locatelli and Alex Sandro should start, while Adrien Rabiot and Paulo Dybala could be rested.
Alvaro Morata and Moise Kean are projected to start up top for the Bianconeri.
There’s also been talk in the Italian media of Mattia Perin earning his first start of the season in place of Wojciech Szczesny. Juve’s number one has enjoyed an upturn in form since his blunder at Napoli, but still hasn’t kept a Serie A clean sheet since March.
Federico Chiesa is reportedly fit for the weekend, but Allegri’s likely to be cautious with him with the Chelsea game on the horizon.
Sampdoria Team News
Mohamed Ihattaren is unlikely to feature against his parent club, while Manolo Gabbiadini is out. Valerio Verre and Ronaldo Vieira are both doubts.
Mikkel Damsgaard is one to watch down the left, while Roberto D’Aversa could continue with the veteran strike partnership of Fabio Quagliarella and Francesco Caputo.
Predicted Lineups
Juventus: Perin; De Sciglio de Ligt, Bonucci, Alex Sandro; Cuadrado, Locatelli, Ramsey, Bernardeschi; Morata, Kean.
Sampdoria: Audero; Bereszynski, Yoshida, Colley, Augello; Candreva, Thorsby, Silva, Damsgaard; Caputo, Quagliarella
Juventus’ Recent Form
Spezia 2-3 Juventus (22/09) – Serie A
Juventus 1-1 AC Milan (19/09) – Serie A
Malmo 0-3 Juventus (14/09) – Champions League
Napoli 2-1 Juventus (11/09) – Serie A
Juventus 0-1 Empoli (28/08) – Serie A
Sampdoria’s Recent Form
Sampdoria 0-4 Napoli (23/09) – Serie A
Empoli 0-3 Sampdoria (19/09) – Serie A
Sampdoria 2-2 Inter Milan (12/09) – Serie A
Sampdoria 3-1 Ternana (04/09) – Friendly
Sassuolo 0-0 Sampdoria (29/08) – Serie A
Prediction
Juventus are certainly flawed, with their defensive vulnerabilities a major worry. However, I think they have enough here, even with a rotated XI, to get past Sampdoria who enter Sunday’s clash off the back of their Napoli thumping.
The visitors have struggled against superior opposition this term, with their only victory coming against Empoli. While they boast a couple of nice pieces, including Danish wizard Mikkel Damsgaard, they possess a defence that Juventus should have some joy against, as Napoli did on Thursday.
Sampdoria will stick around, but I’m backing the hosts to claim all three points and continue their assault up the Serie A table.