After a stuttering start to life under new management, Juventus will aim to relaunch their Serie A campaign on Saturday, when they visit rock-bottom Fiorentina at Stadio Franchi.
While Juve have struggled to meet expectations this season, their hosts went into the international break still awaiting a first league win.
Match preview
Even taking three points off their favourite victims proved beyond Juventus last time out, as Italy's most successful club failed to beat city rivals Torino, leaving them sixth in the Serie A standings.
Though it burst into life during an open second half, the Derby della Mole finished goalless, as Juve pair Kenan Yildiz and Weston McKennie came closest to breaking the deadlock in Turin.
Following on from an overdue win against Cremonese and a 1-1 draw with Sporting Lisbon, there were precious few signs that the Old Lady is primed for revival.
New Bianconeri boss Luciano Spalletti is still unbeaten so far, but the side he recently inherited have won only two of their last 12 matches.
With just three points on the board from four Champions League fixtures, Spalletti certainly has a big task on his hands: reaching the knockout phase and securing a top-four Serie A finish are minimum targets.
Juve's mercurial coach must now visit his home region of Tuscany, aiming to beat the local rivals of former club Empoli - neither he nor his team will be afforded a warm welcome.
Fiorentina's David de Gea on August 9, 2025
For various reasons - including a long history of star players trading Florence for Turin; most notably, Roberto Baggio - Fiorentina fans hold a special level of loathing for Juventus.
However, their chief concern this week will be finally ending a long winless run in Serie A, following the Viola's truly dismal start to the season.
Abruptly ending his second spell, Stefano Pioli recently paid the price for failing to fix a fragile side, and ex-Torino coach Paolo Vanoli was drafted in as his replacement.
Vanoli's dugout debut came against Fiorentina's fellow strugglers Genoa - also under new management - but he was unable to make an immediate impact.
After fighting back from one goal down, the Viola then conceded again and had to settle for a 2-2 draw: they now have the worst defensive record throughout Serie A.
Sitting bottom of the heap with nearly a third of the season gone, it seems a long time since last spring, when they beat Juve 3-0 at the Franchi and were still vying for an elusive Conference League title.
Fiorentina Serie A form:
L L D L L D
Fiorentina form (all competitions):
W D L L L D
Juventus Serie A form:
D L L W W D
Juventus form (all competitions):
L L W W D D
Team News
Juventus' Dusan Vlahovic celebrates after scoring a goal in September 2025
Juventus are monitoring top scorer Dusan Vlahovic, after he returned from international duty nursing an adductor problem, but the former Fiorentina striker could still start in Florence.
While Juan Cabal and Lloyd Kelly both returned to full training during the break, Spalletti is still missing Bremer, whose fellow centre-back Daniele Rugani has just been ruled out by a muscular injury.
Should he be passed fit, Vlahovic will vie with Jonathan David and Lois Openda for selection up front, while Fiorentina's attack could be led by ex-Juve forward Moise Kean.
The latter missed Italy's World Cup qualifiers, but resumed training on Tuesday; he can challenge Roberto Piccoli - who scored his first league goal for the club last time out - to partner Albert Gudmundsson.
Though Kean's return is welcome - even if he has found the net just once in Serie A this term - Vanoli will still be missing Robin Gosens, Christian Kouame and Tariq Lamptey on Saturday evening.
Fiorentina possible starting lineup:
De Gea; Pongracic, Mari, Ranieri; Dodo, Mandragora, Nicolussi Caviglia, Sohm, Fortini; Gudmundsson, Kean
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Di Gregorio; Kalulu, Gatti, Koopmeiners; McKennie, Thuram, Locatelli, Cambiaso; Conceicao, Yildiz; Vlahovic
SM words green background
We say: Fiorentina 0-2 Juventus
Having picked up just one point on home turf - while conceding at a rate of two goals per game - Fiorentina will be under pressure to produce better against their old foes from Turin.
Lying outside Serie A's top four, Juventus are also feeling the heat - but the Bianconeri are better equipped to score at least once.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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