Juventus will be looking to extend their unbeaten run in the Serie A to 24 games, when they face off against Frosinone on Friday night.
Reigning Serie A champions Juventus will be aiming to extend their lead at the top of the table, when they go head to head against relegation battlers Frosinone at the Allianz Stadium on Friday.
Juventus are perched at the top of the Serie A standings comfortably, having opened up an eleven-point lead over second placed Napoli after 23 matches. However, they have been in a bit of a patchy form of late, having lost 0-3 to Atalanta in the quarterfinals of the Coppa Italia, following which they were held to a 3-3 draw by Parma in the league.
Massimiliano Allegri’s men did bounce back strongly, returning to winning ways with a 3-0 win over Sassuolo away from home this past weekend and will be seeking to carry that momentum on Friday night.
Frosinone, on the other hand, are at the other end of the table, languishing in the 19th position, having accumulated just 16 points from their 23 league matches. However, Marco Baroni’s side will be coming into Friday’s encounter with their confidence boosted, following their 0-1 win over Sampdoria last time out.
The last time these two sides met, Juventus left it late to clinch a 0-2 victory, with goals coming from star man Cristiano Ronaldo and Federico Bernardeschi. And ahead of Friday night’s encounter, The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both the rosters.
Team News & Tactics
Juventus
The current champions will have to make do without the services of left-back Alex Sandro, who is out with a suspension, while Douglas Costa and Juan Cuadrado are both injured. Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini have returned from injury, but only one of them is likely to feature on Friday, keeping in mind next week’s Champions League clash against Atletico Madrid.
Daniele Rugani has a thigh problem and will most likely be not involved, meaning Juventus will line up with Bonucci and Martin Caceres as the centre-backs, flanked by Joao Cancelo and Leonardo Spinazzola, who will deputize for the suspended Sandro.
There is likely to be a change in midfield as well, with Blaise Matuidi in line to be rested, which would mean Allegri opts to go in with the three-man midfield of Miralem Pjanic, Rodrigo Bentancur and Emre Can.
Cristiano Ronaldo is a guaranteed starter in attack and will be partnered by Paulo Dybala, who hasn’t started the last three matches. The third slot in attack will be a toss-up between Mario Mandzukic and Federico Bernardeschi, with the former likely to edge out the Italian.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Szczesny; Cancelo, Bonucci, Caceres, Spinazzola; Bentancur, Pjanic, Can; Dybala, Mandzukic, Ronaldo;
Frosinone
The visitors will be boosted by the return of striker Andrea Pinamonti, but will have to make do with the absences of Paolo Ghiglione, Lorenzo Ariaudo, Federico Dionisi and Nicolo Brighenti. Baroni is unlikely to tinker with the 3-5-2 setup that has led his side to back-to-back away wins against Bologna and Sampdoria.
Marco Sportiello will be guarding the goal and will need all the help he can get from the three-man backline of Marco Capuano, Bartosz Salamon and Edoardo Goldaniga. Francesco Zampano and Andrea Beghetto will take up the wing-back slots on the right and left sides respectively and will be crucial in providing width in attack for the visitors.
Baroni will enlist the services of Rafaelle Maiello to act as the deep lying playmaker for Frosinone, with Raman Chibsah providing the energy and the legs in a box-to-box role. The third central midfield slot will be taken up by Francesco Cassata, who will be tasked with adding the creative element on the pitch for the relegation battlers.
The fit-again Piamonti should return in attack for Frosinone and provide the physical presence at the top. He will be supported by Camillo Ciano, who is their top scorer with six goals, and will provide a serious threat from his set-piece prowess.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Sportiello; Capuano, Salamon, Goldaniga; Zampano, Maiello, Cassata, Chibsah, Beghetto; Ciano, Piamonti;
Key Stats
- Juventus have won 21 of their last 24 matches in the Serie A.
- The Bianconeri are unbeaten in their previous five fixtures against Frosinone across all competitions.
- Frosinone’s three victories in the Serie A this season have all come on the road – against SPAL, Bologna and Sampdoria.
- Juventus drew their last league home game 3-3 vs Parma. The last time they failed to win two home matches in a row was back in September 2015 (three games).
- Juventus have scored more goals from set-piece situations than any other Serie A side this season (16); 10 of those have been scored by Cristiano Ronaldo – the most by any player in the competition.
Player to watch
Cristiano Ronaldo
The Portuguese maverick may have turned 34 earlier this month, but is showing no signs of slowing down. Ronaldo was on target once again this past weekend, while he was involved in the other two goals too, as Juventus bounced back from a couple of disappointing results to beat Sassuolo 0-3.
Ronaldo, now, has 18 goals from 23 Serie A outings, which puts him at the top of the goalscoring charts in the competition, two goals ahead of closest competitors Fabio Quagliarella and Duvan Zapata. Having scored against Frosinone the last time out, the former Real Madrid superstar will be raring to go again on Friday and fire his team to another victory.
Prediction
Juventus 2-0 Frosinone
Juventus endured a couple of poor results against Atalanta and Parma but came back strongly with a resounding victory against Sassuolo this past weekend. Frosinone, on the other hand, have picked up back to back away wins, showing some real fight in their battle for survival.
The Italian champions are likely to make a few changes to the team, keeping in mind their big game against Atletico Madrid next week. However, they should have more than enough quality to see off the relegation battlers on Friday night and make it 24 matches without a defeat in the Serie A this season.