Juventus will aim to maintain their winning start to the campaign as they travel to take on Patrick Vieira’s Genoa side.
Patrick Vieira helped Genoa establish themselves as a mid-table team last term, and the expectations will certainly point at him to improve their rankings. Genoa began their comestic campaign with a win over Vincenza in the Coppa Italia, but only settled for a draw in their Serie A opener last weekend against Lecce, with the daunting task of facing Juventus up next.
Genoa came close to scoring against Lecce, and the outcome of the game as a draw would have been disappointing for Vieira. However, he has a big home encounter to look forward to against Juventus, who are looking to establish themselves in the title race early on, while Genoa do not have a recent good record against the Turin giants.
Meanwhile, Igor Tudor was handed a longer contract than his short-term role when he was installed in place of the ineffective Thiago Motta last season. Having led Juventus to a Champions League finish, the Croatian manager also oversaw their Club World Cup campaign that saw them reach the Last 16 of the competition.
However, with the new season already underway, Tudor ensured Juventus opened their Serie A account with a win over Parma. The victory took time to develop as Parma held their own for around an hour before new signing Jonathan David opened the scoring. Dusan Vlahovic then came off the bench to kill the game off with a crucial second strike as the Bianconeri collected the three points.
There are some key challenges ahead for Juventus before they can express themselves thoroughly. For Tudor, establishing this team as an early contender for the title will be the aim, and he could push towards that objective by winning the upcoming tricky away encounter to Genoa.
Team News & Tactics
Genoa
There have been some changes to Genoa’s squad over the summer, such as the departure of top scorer Andrea Pinamonti. Patrick Vieira will have to rely on Lorenzo Colombo to lead the line for the team, with the attacker coming into this clash at the back of eight goals from his last 14 appearances.
Meanwhile, there are a few players expected to miss, such as Caleb Ekuban and Sebastian Otoa, with the pair not having been in action for all this time.
Then there have been those who have made an impact in the squad, with those including Arthur Gronbaek, Valentin Carboni and Nicolae Stanciu, with the trio expected to start for Genoa against Juventus. Meanwhile, Leo Ostigard is deemed fit to start and might have a role in the starting lineup for Genoa on Sunday.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Leali; Norton-Cuffy, Ostigard, Vasquez, Martin; Frendrup, Masini; Carboni, Stanciu, Gronbaek; Colombo
Juventus
Igor Tudor will have to contend with a few of his injured players, such as Fabio Miretti and Juan Cabal. Moreover, Andrea Cambiaso will miss out with a suspension following his sending off against Parma in the opening game. There are further issues in the defensive setup as Nicolo Savona has joined Nottingham Forest.
Hence, Weston McKennie will be called into taking up a wing-back role in the lineup. Dusan Vlahovic is widely expected to leave the club before the transfer deadline, although he might feature on the bench, with new arrival Jonathan David expected to lead the line for Juventus once more.
Federico Gatti, Gleison Bremer, and Lloyd Kelly are in the mix for the back-three setup. Khephren Thuram and Manuel Locatelli will be preferred in the central midfield role, while the in-form Kenan Yildiz and Francisco Conceicao will be in the slots behind the striker.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Di Gregorio; Gatti, Bremer, Kelly; Kalulu, Thuram, Locatelli, McKennie; Conceicao, Yildiz; David
Key Stats
Juventus have kept a clean sheet in their last three matches against Genoa in all competitions.
Juventus have won their last 3 matches in Serie A.
Genoa have beaten Juventus only four times in their last 12 meetings on home soil.
Genoa are without a win in their last four Serie A games.
Player to Watch
Jonathan David
Embed from Getty Images
There are some late changes expected at Juventus when it comes to their attacking setup, with the club actively looking to offload Dusan Vlahovic and bring Randal Kolo Muani back from PSG. Irrespective of what transpires with those two forwards, Juventus may have already found the solution for their starting No.9 with the arrival of David.
The Canadian striker opened his Serie A account in his first game for the club, and will want to add more to his tally during this trip to Genoa. He will be Juventus’s main man in the final third against Genoa, and Igor Tudor will hope for another top-draw performance from David.
Prediction
Genoa 1-2 Juventus
Genoa will look to stifle Juventus in this home encounter, and they do have the capacity to keep the visitors at bay. However, the game will be decided based on the quality on the field, with Juventus certainly edging Patrick Vieira’s side in that regard.
The opening day victory will have given Juventus some much required momentum heading into this clash, and they will secure the win. The Bianconeri are still susceptible to conceding an odd goal despite a formidable defensive setup; however, they are expected to take the three points in the end.