Still reeling from their stunning last-gasp defeat to Sassuolo on Wednesday evening, Juventus make the trip to a resurgent Hellas Verona on Saturday.
After sneaking four 1-0 wins on the bounce before the Derby d’Italia draw, Wednesday’s loss to the Neroverdi was one the Bianconeri were due. There are serious concerns over the sustainability of Massimiliano Allegri’s traditional approach despite their success in the big games, and it already feels that the Scudetto is an unlikely goal.
Sassuolo snatch three points at the death in Turin! 😳
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) October 27, 2021
Juventus commit too many players forward when hunting for a winner and it costs them dearly! 😬 pic.twitter.com/A5kG3CZVT1
With the rest of the contenders winning in the week, Juventus are already 13 points adrift of leaders Napoli and AC Milan, with their defeat leaving them seventh in Serie A. Every game for the foreseeable future feels like a must-win, but a tricky test awaits them on Saturday.
Buoyed by the arrival of former Juve assistant Igor Tudor, Hellas Verona have lost just once in their last seven Serie A outings to lift them to tenth in the table and three points adrift of the Old Lady. They’re starting to look more and more like the side Ivan Juric evolved into the league’s giant killers.
This is not the sort of team Juventus want to be facing right now, and here’s our preview of Saturday’s contest.
How to Watch Hellas Verona vs Juventus
When is kick-off? Saturday 30 October
What time is kick-off? 17:00 (BST)
Where is it played? Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi
TV channel/live stream? BT Sport 3 (UK), Paramount+ (US)
Hellas Verona Team News
The hosts will be without Juventus loanee Gianluca Frabotta for Saturday’s game, although that’s Tudor’s only injury concern.
Nicolo Casale is expected to return after missing the Udinese draw with a muscle injury, while rotation is likely to take place up front. In form tandem Gianluca Caprari and Giovanni Simeone are set to return at the expense of Kevin Lasagna and Nikola Kalinic.
Darko Lazovic should also replace Bosko Sutalo at wing-back.
Juventus Team News
👉 Straight to work on #VeronaJuve 💪
— JuventusFC 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@juventusfcen) October 28, 2021
Mattia De Sciglio has been added to the injury list after he limped off on Wednesday with a hamstring injury. He’ll miss Saturday’s game, as will Federico Bernardeschi and Moise Kean.
Kaio Jorge could make his first Serie A start following his bright cameo against Sassuolo. Alvaro Morata has looked out of sorts since returning from injury.
Manuel Locatelli could drop to the bench with Arthur Melo and Rodrigo Bentancur in contention, while Weston McKennie will be hopeful of retaining his place in the starting XI after scoring his first goal of the season in the week. Wojciech Szczesny will return to the team after Mattia Perin earned a rare start last time out.
Overall, you can expect Allegri to shuffle his pack quite significantly for Saturday’s trip.
Predicted Lineups
Hellas Verona: Montipo; Dawidowicz, Ceccherini, Magnani; Faraoni, Tameze, Veloso, Lazovic; Barak, Caprari, Simeone
Juventus: Szczesny; Cuadrado, Bonucci, Chiellini, Danilo; McKennie, Arthur, Bentancur, Chiesa; Dybala, Jorge.
Hellas Verona’s Recent Form
Udinese 1-1 Hellas Verona (27/10) – Serie A
Hellas Verona 4-1 Lazio (24/10) – Serie A
AC Milan 3-2 Hellas Verona (16/10) – Serie A
Hellas Verona 4-0 Spezia (03/10) – Serie A
Genoa 3-3 Hellas Verona (25/09) – Serie A
Juventus’ Recent Form
Juventus 1-2 Sassuolo (27/10) – Serie A
Inter Milan 1-1 Juventus (24/10) – Serie A
Zenit 0-1 Juventus (20/10) – Champions League
Juventus 1-0 AS Roma (17/10) – Serie A
Juventus 2-1 Alessandria (09/10) – Friendly
Prediction
Ivan Juric’s Verona were a bogey team of Juventus’ last season, and Igor Tudor’s iteration of the Gialloblu pose similar problems. Although, they don’t attempt to win possession high upfield.
They’re an opportunistic outfit and one that’ll take advantage of the Bianconeri if their technical level is poor – as it was against Sassuolo. Allegri won’t be able to block space and counter on Saturday, with Verona poised to cede territory in a bid to exploit the visitors in transition themselves.
The hosts are playing brilliantly and they’ll be a tough side to beat on home soil. Antonin Barak provides Tudor with a source of innovation in the final phase, while Juve’s defence will face up against a pair of purring forwards in Caprari and Simeone. However, given the importance of the contest and the manner of their defeat on Wednesday, I don’t see the Bianconeri losing here. A draw, though, would be just as frustrating.
Prediction: Hellas Verona 1-1 Juventus