Juventus vs. Empoli: Team News, Preview, Live Stream, TV Info
With the international break finally over, Juventus return to action by welcoming Empoli to Turin on Saturday evening.
Having won their last five Serie A matches, the Bianconeri will look to continue that against the Tuscan side and will be fully aware that doing so is essential to their title push.
Sitting just three points clear at the top of the table, head coach Massimiliano Allegri and his men know how vital it is to maintain their streak, as Kwadwo Asamoah explained to Sky Italia recently (h/t Juventus' website):
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"We’ve managed to put together a great run of results after a poor start to the season and now we simply can’t throw away all of our hard work.
In the end, the only thing that matters is who sits on top by the end of the season and so we all need to put in a big final push in these eight Serie A matches coming up. They will all be difficult and we need to win at least seven of them in order to lift the Scudetto, but we’re ready. Our aim is to secure another league and cup double. While it won’t be easy to repeat last year’s achievements, we’ll do everything possible to make sure we do.
"
Their opponents at Juventus Stadium this weekend arrive in more difficult circumstances, occupying 10th place but having endured a desperate string of results. A victory over Torino back on January 10 remains their most recent win, but coach Marco Giampaolo insists his players will not be daunted by a fixture against the reigning Italian champions.
“It’s the ideal match for us because we have nothing to lose,” he told ItaSportPress this week (h/t Football Italia) “I have a young team, some are fired-up because they know the interest of the great teams but we need points, even starting on Saturday.”
Perhaps helping them will be suspensions for Sami Khedira, Alex Sandro and Leonardo Bonucci, while Giorgio Chiellini and Paulo Dybala are expected to miss out through injury.
Date: Saturday, April 2
Time: 7:45 p.m. BST/2:45 p.m. ET
Venue: Juventus Stadium, Turin
TV Info: BT Sport Europe (UK), beIN Sports 1 (USA)
Live Stream: BT Connect (UK)
Form Lines
Last five domestic results:
Probable Formations
Juventus (4-3-3): Gigi Buffon; Stephan Lichtsteiner, Daniele Rugani, Andrea Barzagli, Patrice Evra; Stefano Sturaro, Hernanes, Paul Pogba; Juan Cuadrado, Mario Mandzukic, Alvaro Morata.
Unavailable: Martin Caceres, Paulo Dybala and Claudio Marchisio (all injured), Alex Sandro, Leonardo Bonucci, Sami Khedira (all suspended).
Empoli: (4-3-1-2): Lukasz Skorupski; Vincent Laurini, Andrea Costa, Lorenzo Tonelli, Mario Rui; Piotr Zielinski, Leandro Paredes, Daniele Croce; Riccardo Saponara; Manuel Pucciarelli, Massimo Maccarone.
Unavailable: Uros Cosic (injured).
Player to Watch
While Juventus have injury problems in defence, Empoli will be able to call upon the in-demand Lorenzo Tonelli. According to an interview club president Fabrizio Corsi gave to Radio Kiss Kiss (h/t Football Italia), the Bianconeri have joined Napoli and AS Roma in chasing the 26-year-old.
Tonelli has been vital in helping the Tuscan side maintain their solidity, emerging as a fine defender even after the club lost Daniele Rugani and Elseid Hysaj to Juventus and Napoli, respectively, this past summer.
Weighing in with two goals, statistics courtesy of WhoScored.com show he has averaged 1.7 tackles, 3.0 interceptions and 5.2 clearances per game, while connecting with 82.8 per cent of his 51.7 pass attempts per outing.
Faced with the likes of Mario Mandzukic and Alvaro Morata, Tonelli will need to be at his best if Empoli are to stand a chance this coming weekend.
Key Battle
Perhaps the biggest obstacle for Juventus will be Riccardo Saponara, with the Empoli playmaker performing at a consistently high level throughout 2015/16. Contributing an impressive five goals and nine assists, the 24-year-old is another member of the Azzurri squad gathering interest from some of Europe’s biggest clubs.
Linked with Napoli, Roma, Fiorentina, Liverpool and Barcelona, Saponara has also been discussed as a Juventus target and seems ready to move on at the end of the season, as he told the Pianeta Empoli website recently.
“I learned that there can be thousands of rumours, but until it becomes concrete then it’s worth very little,” Saponara said (h/t Football Italia). “I have made myself ignore stories that could distract me and on top of it all I doubt there is any foundation to them. Could I go abroad? I will evaluate any proposal and am open to any offer.”
With Claudio Marchisio injured, the task of slowing Saponara will likely fall to Hernanes, who will need to rise to the occasion after a difficult debut campaign in Turin. He has yet to find his best form but has improved recently, giving the Bianconeri hope that he can win this key battle.
Odds (via Odds Shark)
Away win: 10-1
Home win: 100-333
Draw: 4-1
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