SPAL 2 - 1 JUVENTUS
AJAX 6 - 1 EXCELSIOR
Currently Juventus are ahead on the away goal rule after drawing the first leg 1-1 in Amsterdam, however like the scoreline suggests this is a tie that is very much in the balance. Juventus go into this match on the back of a 2 - 1 defeat against SPAL, though that result shouldn't be used as a gauge for what could happen tonight, as Allegri heavily rotated the squad & gave 4 youth team players some minutes on the pitch. Ajax were yet again scoring for fun in a one sided 6 - 1 victory over Excelsior, unlike Juventus Erik ten Hag chose not to rest several first team players and could pay the price for that decision, as De Jong limped off injured during the first half. As of writing whether or not De Jong will play is uncertain, "De Jong is still in doubt," Erik ten Hag . "The fact that he is not training yet is not decisive in terms of whether he will play. We don't test it that way." One player that Ajax will definitely be without is Nicolas Tagliafico, who misses out due to suspension.
MISSING IN ACTION :
Juventus will once again be without Giorgio Chiellini who has yet to recover from an injury setback, also missing in action will be Mario Mandzukic, though it could be said that the Croatian went M.I.A during the first leg anyway. Danielle Rugani is likely to step in for Chiellini once more, and if he puts in a similar performance to the one in Amsterdam then fans needent panic too much. Unlike the straight forward answer to who will replace Chiellini, its a different story when it comes to who starts in place of Mandzukic, and that's not a bad thing. Mandzukic has yet to score in 2019 and as shown during the first leg meeting this isnt the type of game for him anyway. Mandzukic has his attributes, mainly a physical prescence & high work rate but neither are invaluable assets against Ajax. When it comes to who starts in Mandzukic's position its a case of 'take your pick' from a selection of Paulo Dybala, Douglas Costa & Moise Kean. All have their star qualities but based on form alone you would surely go with Moise Kean? Who despite only being 19 years old, he has scored 4 goals in 5 of Juventus most recent fixtures and is showing no signs of stopping any time soon. Douglas Costa is also another contender to start, bringing pace & creativity into the team, though he will likely start from the substitute bench as Allegri said that the Brazilian is not in "perfect condition right now". Out of the three Paulo Dybala is the wild card, 2018/2019 hasn't been the greatest season for La Joya but his ability & talent cant be denied. Dybala has delivered on the big Champions League nights in the past against Tottenham & Barcelona, could he add Ajax to that list?
PAULO DYBALA : TIME TO SHINE?
Its been a long time since Dybala has impressed in a Juventus shirt this season, yet tonight the number ten could finally force his way into the spotlight and shine. Form wise Dybala hasn't been great, far from it, but with Mandzukic injured & Douglas Costa not in 100% condition it becomes a 1 on 1 duel between Dybala & Moise Kean for a place in the starting 11. Allegri rarely starts Moise Kean despite his goal scoring form, preferring to slowly ease Kean into the team (sound familiar Paulo?) and given the importance of tonights game you would expect Kean to start as a substitute. This means that Dybala would not only be handed a rare start, but also the added responsibility of the captains armband, as confirmed by Allegri "If Dybala plays then he will wear the captain's armband, otherwise it will be Bonucci." No pressure Paulo.
GAME MANAGEMENT :
In the first leg Allegri showed Ajax plenty of respect with the way that Juventus approached the game, conceding possession & generally sitting back until a counter attack presented itself. This approach is all fine & well for an away leg against an attacking side such as Ajax, but now that Juventus have home advantage the Bianconeri would be wise not to repeat the same tactic tonight. Simply put, Ajax are the ones that must score to give themselves any chance of winning the tie, but that doesn't mean that Juventus should go into this match solely to defend. Concede possession & allow the Dutch to flood men forward like they did in Amsterdam, and Juventus may well regret it.
WHAT TO EXPECT :
As said before, Ajax will travel to Turin with every intention of attacking Juventus and drawing the first leg 1-1 will only encourage them even more to do so. Restricting Ajax to long range efforts would be Juventus best bet of keeping goals conceded to a minimum, whilst Ajax created many goal scoring opportunities in the previous meeting most were from outside of the 18-yard box, and for the most part possessed little threat. When attacking, Ajax leave themselves vulnerable to a counter attack, as seen for both Bernardesci & Douglas Costa goal scoring chances. If Juventus can exploit this once more they may well find themselves one step away from another Champions League final. Expect this one to be full of drama & edge of your seat moments, after all, in this moment it is the biggest game of the season for Juventus.
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