Atalanta vs Juventus – On Sunday, struggling Atalanta BC and in-form Juventus face off in a critical match for a top-four spot, with both sides on very different paths since the turn of the year.
Juve leads La Dea by two points in Serie A following three victories and two draws since the winter break, and while a win for the Bianconeri would extend their lead, a win for the hosts would help them overtake their Turin rivals.
Atalanta faced Fiorentina in the Coppa Italia quarter-final on Thursday in need of a morale-boosting win after suffering another Serie A defeat the previous weekend.
However, a late collapse against the 10-man Viola saw them knocked out of the cup – a competition in which they lost the final to Juventus last season – and condemned the Bergamo club to a fourth match without a win.
The Nerazzurri’s loss at the Gewiss Stadium, where they play their third of four home games in a row on Sunday, adds to their poor record in Lombardy, where they have only three wins in 12 league appearances.
Juventus’ recent run of good fortune continued on Thursday evening, when they eliminated Sassuolo in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals due to a late own goal.
Despite the fact that the decisive goal was ‘credited’ to an unfortunate Ruan Tressoldi, the cup holders owed their progress to another intervention by big-money signing Dusan Vlahovic. The cup holders, who entered Serie A’s top four after last week’s league win against Hellas Verona, owed their progress to another intervention by big-money signing Dusan Vlahovic.
The Serbian striker’s powerful run and strike was significantly deflected past Gianluca Pegolo, adding to his debut goal for the Bianconeri against Verona, bolstering his claim for the Capocannoniere title – the former Fiorentina striker is presently level with Ciro Immobile with 18 league goals.
Atalanta vs Juventus – Team News
Juventus coach Max Allegri is expected to make numerous changes from the team that defeated Sassuolo on Thursday, with Danilo and first-choice goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny expected to return to the starting XI.
Dusan Vlahovic will almost certainly start in attack – he’ll be making his 100th Serie A appearance against a team he’s already scored four goals against – while Alvaro Morata and Paulo Dybala are likely to compete for a spot in support of the Bianconeri’s new number seven.
In midfield, Allegri is said to be debating between Adrien Rabiot and Weston McKennie, and while Giorgio Chiellini and long-term absentee Federico Chiesa remain unavailable, Federico Bernardeschi may now be fit enough to make the bench.
Meanwhile, Atalanta are concerned about the fitness of Jose Luis Palomino and Giuseppe Pezzella, who could join Colombian striker Duvan Zapata on the sidelines for the remainder of the season.
Luis Muriel, a compatriot of Zapata’s, has never scored a league goal against Juventus in 15 attempts, but he is the most likely to lead the line for La Dea, with either Ruslan Malinovskyi or January signing Jeremie Boga, who scored in his debut start for the club in midweek, providing assistance.
Because goalkeeper Juan Musso is sidelined following his red card last weekend, Francesco Rossi and Marco Sportiello will compete for the final spot in the hosts’ defense.
Atalanta BC possible starting lineup:
Sportiello; Djimsiti, Demiral, Toloi; Hateboer, De Roon, Freuler, Zappacosta; Pessina; Boga, Muriel
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Szczesny; Danilo, De Ligt, Bonucci, Sandro; Locatelli, Zakaria, Rabiot; Cuadrado, Vlahovic, Morata
Atalanta vs Juventus – Head-to-Head
Our Prediction: Under 3.5 Goals
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