Seeking to continue their long dominance of the Turin derby, Serie A's fallen giants Juventus visit city rivals Torino on Saturday evening.
After posting back-to-back wins, Juve now aim for an 18th straight game without defeat to their neighbours, which would set a new record in the Derby della Mole.
Match preview
© Reuters
Having ended a worrying winless run just days earlier, when beating Lazio in the Coppa Italia, Juventus hosted fellow cup semi-finalists Fiorentina last week and ground their way to victory in classic Max Allegri style.
Recording just a 25% share of possession, Juve were indebted to Federico Gatti's first-half strike, as ex-Viola star Dusan Vlahovic had two goals ruled out by the VAR and their visitors once again failed to fire in the final third.
Allegri's side have now won 11 Serie A matches with lower than a 50% share of the ball, and throughout Europe's top five leagues this season, no team has managed to do so more often - only Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid can match such a tally.
While it was not pretty to watch, the Bianconeri halted a four-match streak without top-flight victory, tightening their grip on third place - they sit four points ahead of Bologna, but trail behind both Milan clubs following their recent downturn.
Juventus will take a two-goal lead to Rome for the second leg of their Coppa semi-final later this month, so some silverware can still be salvaged from another difficult season, but their faltering away form remains cause for concern.
Winless on their travels since the end of January, Juve have lost three of their last four league matches on the road - as many as in the previous 16 - and could now go five without an away win for the first time since 2010.
They will not have far to go this weekend, though, and they have not only scored in each of their last 15 league matches away to Torino but are also unbeaten in 17 Turin derbies overall.
© Reuters
As part of that run, Saturday's hosts were beaten 2-0 in the most recent Derby della Mole, which took place at the Allianz Stadium in October; in Serie A history, there have been some 77 Juventus victories to date, compared to just 35 for Torino.
The latter's 3-2 loss to Empoli last week ended a four-match unbeaten run, and was notable for an unusual absence of defensive discipline: Ivan Juric saw his side throw a point away during stoppage time, as they drew level through Duvan Zapata before surrendering a last-gasp goal to the relegation-threatened Azzurri.
Despite leaving Stadio Castellani empty-handed, Torino still occupy ninth place in the table - just ahead of Fiorentina and Monza - and are on course for a top-half finish next month.
Underpinning their progress, Toro's tally of 10 clean sheets at home - a joint-high in Serie A this season - has made them particularly tough to beat at Stadio Olimpico Grande.
They will now aim to reach 11 in a single top-flight campaign for the first time in club history, and with only two home losses from 15 league matches so far this term, the Granata may fancy frustrating their bitterest rivals.
Team News
© Reuters
After getting his team back on track last week, Max Allegri is not expected to make any changes to his starting XI on Saturday, when Arkadiusz Milik will be the only Juventus player ruled out by injury.
Therefore, top scorer Dusan Vlahovic should start up front, alongside Federico Chiesa, while Bremer, Danilo and Federico Gatti feature in the visitors' back three.
The latter's first Serie A goal came in October's reverse fixture and he has since scored three more times in the league - including the winner last week - effectively claiming six points for his club in the process.
Meanwhile, Torino striker Duvan Zapata - who has previously scored six times in 16 matches against Juve - moved on to seven Serie A strikes this year by bagging a brace in Empoli; only Vlahovic has scored more in 2024 (penalties excluded).
Though Ivan Ilic has returned to full training, Karol Linetty and Samuele Ricci could be retained in Toro's midfield, with Nikola Vlasic and Antonio Sanabria supporting Zapata in the final third.
Koffi Djidji, Perr Schuurs, Gvidas Gineitis and Pietro Pellegri are still sidelined, but Ivan Juric has no new injury concerns.
Torino possible starting lineup:
Milinkovic-Savic; Tameze, Buongiorno, Rodriguez; Bellanova, Linetty, Ricci, Lazaro; Vlasic; Sanabria, Zapata
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Szczesny; Gatti, Bremer, Danilo; Cambiaso, McKennie, Locatelli, Rabiot, Kostic; Chiesa, Vlahovic
We say: Torino 1-1 Juventus
Recent history weighs against them, but Torino are made of sterner stuff under Ivan Juric - most notably on home turf.
As Juventus are still searching for rhythm after their form collapsed in February, they may have to settle for a single point from the latest Derby della Mole.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Jonathan O'Shea
