Serie A PREVIEW | Salernitana v Juventus

A cracking matchday is in the cards today as lowly Salernitana will aim to surpass Juventus in the league standings when they face each other at the Stadio Arechi. 

Owing to the deduction of points and ineffective performances on the pitch, Juventus now find themselves only 9 points adrift from the relegation zone. They approach this match after progressing to the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia by edging past Lazio last weekend. Defender Gleison Bremer’s first-half header stood as the difference between the two sides as the Bianconeri’s hopes for silverware in this challenging season continue. 

Juventus haven’t had much to enjoy in the league recently as they are winless in their last three Serie A matchdays. The humiliation to Napoli was followed by an exciting 3-3 draw with Atalanta and they suffered a shocking defeat at home to Monza in their most recent league matchup. 

Manager Maximiliano Allegri will hope to rally his men despite the circumstances and snatch the wins in their last two league fixtures before they host Nantes in a Europa League clash in mid-February. 

Meanwhile, Salernitana will hope to steer clear of the relegation zone by a substantial margin when they host the Bianconeri today evening. 

Davide Nicola’s side have only gained a point from their last four matches since the World Cup and are 7 points above the relegation compartment. 

The 8-2 humiliation to Atalanta was followed by a defeat to Napoli to league leaders Napoli but they recovered from their woes and secured the three points in their last league fixture against Lecce. Boulaye Dia opened the scoring for the Garnets, and Tonny Vilhena doubled the lead in the 20th minute. Lecce’s Gabriel Strefezza pulled one back for the hosts but Salernitana could hold them off till the final whistle and cement their hopes of survival in the Serie A.

The Granata have already snatched a point from Juventus earlier this season and manager Davide Nicola will hope for a repeat of the result but they won’t hesitate to fancy their chances in attack.

Results from their last five matches in all competitions

Salernitana:

W L L D L

Juventus:

W L D W L

Team News

Davide Nicola will be without first-team defenders Federico Fazio and Norbert Gyomber for this match due to muscle injuries.

Giulio Maggiore and Pasquale Mazzocchi are doubtful to start as they have sustained minor muscular problems. 

As for Juventus, they will be without the likes of Paul Pogba, Arkadiusz Milik, Leonardo Bonucci and Kaio Jorge due to long-term injuries. 

Massimiliano Allegri is expected to field the same lineup from that Lazio match and secure a much-needed win.

Predicted XIs

Salernitana (4-3-3): Ochoa; Bradaric, Bronn, Troost-Ekong, Sambia; Coulibaly, Bohinen, Vilhena; Dia, Candreva, Piatek

Juventus (3-5-2): Szczesny; Danilo, Bremer, Sandro; Cuadrado, Fagiolo, Locatelli, Rabiot; Chiesa, Vlahovic

Trambak Bhattacherjee | GIFN