Juventus are in danger of drifting further away from the title race, as Massimiliano Allegri will demand an urgent win over Hellas Verona.
Two teams on opposite ends of the table will take on each other, with Hellas Verona having much to lose and everything to gain should they manage a favourable result. Marco Baroni’s men could only earn a draw against Monza last weekend, which extended their winless run to four games in the division.
The fact that Verona lacks an attacking threat up front has coincided with the club’s decision to sell Milan Djuric and Cyril Ngonge in the January window, and it is one that they may come to regret in the end. The Serie A strugglers are still only a point away from safety, but considering the quality of other teams around them, it’s a difficult task for Baroni’s men as things stand.
Moreover, they face Juventus, a side they haven’t beaten in their last 33 meetings at Turin in the league, as Baroni will only hope that changes. With the Bianconeri also coming into the clash in a low form, Verona might sense this is the opportunity to get something from this clash, although in truth, it’s against the odds.
Massimiliano Allegri will demand nothing but a win from his players, as he would have relayed to those stars the importance of three points at the weekend. For a brief moment, Juventus went top of the league when Inter Milan were away in Saudi Arabia, but things have gone downhill for the Turin giants since.
⏰ Cambiaso coming up clutch last time out 🆚 Verona 🥳 pic.twitter.com/lWjqz5njZa
— JuventusFC 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@juventusfcen) February 16, 2024
A morale-sapping draw against Empoli was followed by a direct clash with rivals Inter Milan, which Juventus lost by a single goal. While they were not much far from the San Siro rivals, last weekend’s disappointing loss to Udinese at home dealt a big blow to their chances of catching up with Inter Milan.
The Nerrazzuri are now seven points clear of Juventus with a game in hand over their rivals. Hence, the Bianconeri have much to lose should they drop more points from here on, as Allegri will want his team to respond in the right way and stay in touch with the league leaders.
Team News & Tactics
Hellas Verona
Baroni has a few injury troubles with the squad, although Verona may only be missing Juan Manuel Cruz this weekend. Meanwhile, Tomas Suslov is back in contention after serving a suspension when his side drew to Monza last weekend. .
#Baroni: "Affrontiamo la Juventus puntando sull'orgoglio di tutti noi" / VIDEO#HVFC #VeronaJuve #SerieATIM https://t.co/8H7XL9073M
— Hellas Verona FC (@HellasVeronaFC) February 16, 2024
The effect of Suslov’s return could mean Suat Serdar made way and took his place on the bench. Baroni will also want some competition for places in the squad and already senses on-loan Polish forward Karol Swiderski will aim to hold off the challenges of Thomas Henry and Federico Bonazzoli.
Either way, Baroni will aim to field his strongest available set of players to ward off the challenge posed by Juventus on Saturday.
The Verona boss will likely keep his system the same, irrespective of the opposition in question. Hence, he would keep playing the 4-2-3-1 shape and will aim to give his attackers some freedom to penetrate the Juventus defence, which will come across as a big challenge.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1) – Montipo; Tchatchoua, Magnani, Dawidowicz, Cabal; Duda, Serdar; Folorunsho, Suslov, Lazovic; Noslin
Juventus
There are some selection headaches for Allegri before he names his lineup for the Verona clash away from home. for starters, the manager will have key defender Danilo back into contention, although the Bianconeri have lost Gleison Bremer to a suspension.
👟⚽️↔️⚡️ pic.twitter.com/XCWAXAaFMf
— JuventusFC 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@juventusfcen) February 15, 2024
In terms of injuries, only Moise Kean, Mattia De Sciglio, and Mattia Perin are missing from action, as Allegri will give a good enough squad to choose from. With Bremer absent, Daniele Rugani and Federico Gatti will join Danilo in that back three.
Adrien Rabiot should tag alongside Manuel Locatelli and Weston McKennie in that midfield, while Andrea Cambiaso and Filip Kostic are likely to keep hold of their wing-back position.
Up front, Dusan Vlahovic is still in considerable doubt with a thigh problem, although the forward might return to the squad and feature from the bench. Allegri might also choose Federico Chiesa in place of Kenan Yildiz upfront, as the Italian will likely partner with the experienced Arkadiusz Milik in the two starting front roles.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2) – Szczesny; Gatti, Rugani, Danilo; Cambiaso, McKennie, Locatelli, Rabiot, Kostic; Milik, Chiesa
Key Stats
- Verona have failed to win 20 of their last 22 matches in Serie A.
- Verona have failed to win any of their last 33 Serie A games against Juventus in Turin.
- Juventus have been drawing at half-time and winning at full-time in their last 3 matches against Verona in all competitions.
- Juventus have kept a clean sheet in their last 4 matches against Verona in all competitions.
- Juventus are winless in their last 3 Serie A games, failing to score in their last 2.
Player to Watch
Arkadiusz Milik
En los últimos meses Arkadiusz Milik 🇵🇱 rechazó dos propuestas para salir de la #Juventus. Adelanta @NicoSchira que dos clubes saudíes querían al delantero polaco que finalmente quiso seguir en #SerieA. Tiene contrato con los de Turín hasta 2026 pic.twitter.com/XUJRBL59P2
— Eugenio González Aguilera (@Eugeniogonza2) February 13, 2024
Dusan Vlahovic earned the Serie A Player of the Month award for January, as Juventus were in rampant form, and so was the Serbian. The whole bad run that Juventus are experiencing right now stemmed from that red card earned by Milik against Empoli.
However, with Vlahovic likely to miss the Verona game, at least from the start, it’s a huge opportunity for Milik to shine in his absence. Allegri will bank on the Poli striker’s experience to get some goals and potentially even a win, as the forward must respond positively and show the manager he can be a good enough contributor.
Prediction
Hellas Verona 0-2 Juventus
Verona have struggled since the turn of the year and they might continue to do so as well as keep their dreadful form against Juventus. However, while they might sense this could be the right time to face the Bianconeri, it could have the opposite effect, as Allegri will want an angry reaction from his players.
However, Juventus have enough firepower to bounce back from their recent impasse and get themselves back in the title race. That could come at the expense of Verona, who are struggling and could continue to fire blanks in the league.
