Juventus hopeful of having Paulo Dybala & Giorgio Chiellini fit for Villarreal
Juventus’ injury list is shortening and the club are hopeful of having both Paulo Dybala and Giorgio Chiellini fit for Wednesday’s all-important clash against Villarreal.
Juve take on the Spanish outfit this week hoping to avoid a third-straight Champions League exit at the first knockout stage. The two sides head into the second leg all square after Dani Parejo cancelled out Dusan Vlahovic’s record-breaking opener in the first fixture.
A defensive lapse from the Bianconeri that allowed Parejo to ghost in behind and score means it’s all to play for in Turin, but Juventus could be boosted by the returns of two big names from injury.
Juventus are hopeful of having both Paulo Dybala & Giorgio Chiellini fit for the second leg against Villarreal
#Juventus: #Chiellini e #Dybala hanno svolto gran parte dell'allenamento in gruppo, ad eccezione della parte finale dedicata ai tiri. Entrambi puntano a essere convocati per il #Villarreal 🇮🇹🇦🇷@GoalItalia
— Romeo Agresti (@romeoagresti) March 13, 2022
Massimiliano Allegri has brilliantly mitigated Juve’s injury woes over the past month. The Bianconeri’s unbeaten run in Serie A has stretched to 15 games, and talk of a late Scudetto charge is intensifying.
Most recently, Juve cruised to an efficient 3-1 victory over Sampdoria to extend their lead over Atalanta in the top-four race to eight points.
Allegri welcomed back defenders Mattia De Sciglio and Alex Sandro for Saturday’s game, and Romeo Agresti reports that Dybala and Chiellini could be back in action on Wednesday.
Agresti writes that both players took part in the majority of group training on Sunday and the aim is for each of them to be involved against Villarreal. However, Leonardo Bonucci and Denis Zakaria will not be fit for the game.
Chiellini has been out for over a month with a calf injury, while Dybala has been sidelined since he was forced off in the Derby della Mole with a thigh injury on 18 February. The Argentine was poised to return to action against Spezia two Saturdays ago, but he suffered another setback which saw him miss another two games.
And while Juve have coped admirably in his absence, with Alvaro Morata usurping La Joya as Juve’s leading Serie A scorer, his comeback will undoubtedly be welcomed by Juventini. A starting berth, however, seems unlikely.