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Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri, left, and Juventus captain Gianluigi Buffon attend a press conference ahead of the 2015 TIM Italian Supercup against Lazio at the Shanghai Stadium in Shanghai Thursday, Aug. 6, 2015. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri, left, and Juventus captain Gianluigi Buffon attend a press conference ahead of the 2015 TIM Italian Supercup against Lazio at the Shanghai Stadium in Shanghai Thursday, Aug. 6, 2015. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)Ng Han Guan/Associated Press

Juventus vs. Lazio, Italian Super Cup: Team News, Preview, Live Stream, TV Info

Adam DigbyAug 7, 2015

The Supercoppa Italiana is the traditional Serie A curtain raiser, pitting the league champions against the Coppa Italia winners every season since 1988. That is slightly different this season, as Juventus lifted both trophies in 2014/15, meaning they will face Cup runners-up Lazio once again.

As it has been on a number of occasions, this year’s edition will be held abroad, with Shanghai Stadium in China hosting the competition for the first time. The Bianconeri will be seeking a record seventh triumph, while their opponents have notched three wins, and the two have met in this competition twice before.

Juventus won two years ago to avenge their defeat in 1998, and on each of the five occasions that a team has completed a domestic double, they have also gone on to lift the Supercoppa. Stefano Pioli’s men will hope to break that tradition, and they will do so having held on to all the players who impressed in the previous campaign.

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Chief among them are Antonio Candreva and Felipe Anderson, the duo having registered a combined 20 goals and 16 assists in 2014/15. Standing in their way is a new-look Juventus side—the Old Lady have lost Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal and Carlos Tevez, replacing them with the likes of Mario Mandzukic and Paulo Dybala.

They have suffered a raft of injuries during pre-season, however, with Giorgio Chiellini, Sami Khedira and Alvaro Morata all ruled out of this clash with a variety of knocks. Coach Massimiliano Allegri will still have a formidable group of players to choose from and will hope to start the new campaign on a positive note.

ROME, ITALY - MAY 20:  Stefano Pioli head coach of Lazio and Massimiliano Allegri head coach of Juventus  after the TIM Cuo final match between SS Lazio and Juventus FC at Olimpico Stadium on May 20, 2015 in Rome, Italy.  (Photo by Giuseppe Bellini/Getty

Date: Saturday August 8, 2015

Time: 2 p.m. CET (1 p.m. BST/8 a.m. EDT)

Venue: Shanghai Stadium, Shanghai, China

TV Info: RAI Uno (Italy) RAI International (Rest of World)

Live Stream: BeIn Sports Connect (U.S.)

Form Lines

Borussia Dortmund 2-0 Juventus (Friendly)Lazio 14-0 Auronzo
 Lazio 9-1 Top 11 Radio Club 103
Lechia Gdansk 1-2 Juventus (Friendly)Lazio 0-1 Vicenza
 Anderlecht 3-1 Lazio
Marseille 2-0 Juventus (Friendly)Sigma Olomouc 3-2 Lazio
 Mainz 3-0 Lazio

Predicted Lineups

Juventus (3-5-2): Gigi Buffon; Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci, Martin Caceres; Stephan Lichtsteiner, Stefano Sturaro, Claudio Marchisio, Paul Pogba, Patrice Evra; Mario Mandzukic, Paulo Dybala

Lazio (4-3-3): Federico Marchetti; Dusan Basta, Stefan de Vrij, Santiago Gentiletti, Stefan Radu; Danilo Cataldi, Lucas Biglia, Eddy Onazi; Antonio Candreva, Miroslav Klose, Felipe Anderson

Player to Watch

After the official Juventus website announced that Alvaro Morata would miss the next month with a torn calf muscle, the importance of Mario Mandzukic cannot be understated. The Croatian has proved that he can be relied upon to score regularly, netting a total of 68 goals across the last three seasons.

ST GALLEN, SWITZERLAND - JULY 25: Mario Mandzukic of Juventus reacts during the friendly match between Juventus and Borussia Dortmund on July 25, 2015 in St Gallen, Switzerland.  (Photo by Daniel Kopatsch/Getty Images)

He also lifted nine trophies across that same timeframe, enjoying incredible success with Bayern Munich before moving on to Atletico Madrid 12 months ago. Having fallen out of favour with Diego Simeone, the 29-year-old made a €19 million switch to Juventus and will hope to maintain his rich vein of form.

“I hope to continue to score goals from inside the box,” Mandzukic told reporters at his inaugural press conference in Turin. “But I am aware that there’s more to football than just hitting the target, so I hope to offer an all-round contribution to the side.”

Key Battle

Having watched Felipe Anderson blossom into one of Serie A’s most devastating attacking forces last term, stopping him on Saturday evening will be central to Juve’s chances of victory. The Brazilian was sensational for the Stadio Olimpico side, weighing in with 11 goals and seven assists in all competitions as he terrorised defences across the peninsula.

GENOA, ITALY - MAY 16:  Felipe Anderson of SS Lazio in action during the Serie A match between UC Sampdoria and SS Lazio at Stadio Luigi Ferraris on May 16, 2015 in Genoa, Italy.  (Photo by Getty Images/Getty Images)

He was a major factor in the Biancocelesti securing their third-place finish and their Coppa Italia final berth, and the man tasked with marking him here will almost certainly be Swiss right-back Stephan Lichtsteiner.

He moved from Lazio four years ago, winning a league title every year in Turin and earning a reputation as one of the club’s most dependable performers. The defender was sent off in the club’s final friendly against Marseille last week, and he will need to be at his best if he is to slow down the Roman club’s flyer.

Odds (via Odds Checker)

Juventus win: 11-10

Lazio win: 3-1

Draw: 12-5

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