In search of redemption. There Juventus returns to the field after the scorching disappointment of the Super Cup, vanished at the last second of a very tight match, with the awareness of having to reset everything and start again with a victory, especially in a round that will see Atalanta face leaders Inter. Today's opponent is Udinese by Cioffi (20.45 pm), in great difficulty due to Covid but already able to stop the Lady in the first leg: that day there was still a certain Cristiano Ronaldo, albeit on the bench, and his goal disallowed for offside by a few centimeters it probably had the effect of a sliding door.
However, the run-up to the Champions League comes from games like these and the Bianconeri, up until Wednesday on the strength of a string of eight consecutive useful results, have all the credentials to complete it, also because Napoli are certainly not going through a positive period. However, a lot depends on the performance with the small teams, so far the real Achilles' heel of a team that, paradoxically, makes a better impression when the bar is raised. A mental issue, but also a technical one: with the big teams you can "limit yourself" to defense and counter-attack only, with the provincials you have to build the game and there are the flaws of a group very far from the glories of the past, especially in midfield and in attack.
“It's not a question of reacting, the championship is something else than the Super Cup – the thought of Allegri – We face a very physical team that is good at defending, we will need patience, technique and lucidity. We want to reverse the trend with the small ones, this is the step we need to improve". Despite Wednesday's defeat, the climate is quite positive, even if it exists Dybala grain to reckon with. The Argentine, as explained yesterday, no longer seems willing to renew his contract, so much so that Marotta's Inter are giving it more than one thought: a difficult situation to manage but one we will have to live with, at least until decisions are made definitive, one way or the other.
“The club thinks about these things, some things don't concern me – glossed over the Juventus coach -. From a technical point of view, however, I can say that I raised Paulo, when he arrived from Palermo he was a child, but today he is an extraordinary player. He can give us a lot, in the second half of the season we expect a lot from him, both in terms of goals and performances: he's a great player." In short, Max votes for Dybala, without imposing any ultimatum, in perfect harmony with his character.
The head, after all, is directed above all to Udinese, which the Lady will have to face without Chiesa and Bonucci, the latter the victim of a muscle strain that will keep him in the pits until after the break. Today's 4-2-3-1 will thus see Szczesny in goal, Cuadrado, De Ligt, Rugani and Pellegrini in defense, Bentancur and Locatelli in midfield, Kulusevski, Dybala and McKennie behind the lone striker Morata. The usual 3-5-2 instead for Cioffi, who will respond with Silvestri in goal, Perez, Nuytinck and Zeegelaar in the back, Soppy, Arslan, Walace, Makengo and Udogie in the midfield, Deulofeu and Beto in attack.
The other delicate challenge of this Saturday is that of the Arechi, where the Salernitana of the new president Iervolino will face the Lazio of Lotito, former owner of the grenade. A match full of meaning, therefore, also because the tensions with the biancoceleste number one, of course, have certainly not gone into oblivion. Colantuono's team, waiting to know what the immediate future holds (Sabatini will arrive shortly, with probable repercussions both on the coach and on a good part of the squad), wants to give continuity to the great success in Verona, which has reawakened hopes of salvation. Lazio, on the other hand, has to redeem a really bad start to the year: the draw with Empoli and the defeat in Milan, in fact, are difficult to reconcile with the European ambitions of a team built to stay on top, and instead reduced to a sad eighth place.
A match that promises to be interesting and far from obvious, with Sarri deciding to rely on the usual 4-3-3 with Strakosha in goal, Lazzari, Luiz Felipe, Patric and Marusic in defense, Milinkovic-Savic, Cataldi and Luis Alberto in midfield , Pedro, Immobile and Zaccagni in attack. Colantuono, still grappling with several absentees due to Covid (Ribery above all) and under the watchful eyes of Iervolino (first at Arechi for him), will respond with a 4-4-1-1 with Belec between the posts, Zortea, Delli Carri, Veseli and Ranieri in the back department, Kechrida, Di Tacchio, Schiavone Kastanos and Obi in the midfield, Kastanos supporting the lone striker Djuric.
