Villarreal vs Juventus –
Villarreal welcomes Juventus to the Estadio de la Ceramica for the opening leg of their last-16 tie. Unai Emery, a multiple Europa League winner, will be looking to advance in the Champions League.
To make it this far, the Yellow Submarine placed second in Group F behind Manchester United, while Juventus won Group H ahead of reigning champions Chelsea.
Emery’s brilliant record in Europe’s second tier is unrivaled, but the former Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain manager will be more aware than anyone that his club is a massive outsider to capture the Champions League trophy.
Despite two defeats to Manchester United, Villarreal held their own in the group stages, and a thrilling 3-2 win away to Atalanta BC on the penultimate matchday sealed their spot in the knockout rounds for the first time since 2009.
Forcing the incumbent champions to settle for second place in the group stages is undoubtedly a good sign for this topsy-turvy Juventus team, which is in desperate need of European victory while still attempting to re-establish their domestic dominance.
The less said about the 4-0 thrashing at Stamford Bridge, the better, but Massimiliano Allegri’s team won five of their remaining five Group H games to advance with 15 points – only Ajax, Liverpool, and Bayern Munich advanced with a better record.
Juve, on the other hand, has been struggling in Serie A recently and did not have the best warm-up for this match, having to settle for a 1-1 draw with Torino in the Derby della Mole after Matthijs de Ligt’s early goal was cancelled out by the visitors’ talisman Andrea Belotti.
Villarreal vs Juventus – Team News:
Villarreal will get forward Yeremi Pino back following his suspension against Atalanta, but the continued absence of goal-scorer Gerard Moreno is a major setback.
Giovani Lo Celso will need to be assessed after being photographed with ice on his leg following his replacement against Granada. Francis Coquelin and Ruben Pena are also out of contention, with Etienne Capoue a slight worry.
Raul Albiol, a veteran defender, returns from a suspension to replace Aissa Mandi at the heart of the defense, while Samuel Chukwueze and Juan Foyth should also return to the starting XI.
Meanwhile, Juventus will welcome back right-back Danilo from a domestic suspension, which might come at a good moment because Juan Cuadrado is one yellow card away from a European suspension.
Allegri was already without Federico Chiesa, Leonardo Bonucci, and Giorgio Chiellini when Daniele Rugani pulled out of the 1-1 draw with Torino due to a warm-up injury, while Paulo Dybala and Luca Pellegrini were both injured during the match.
Allegri will be desperate to welcome Federico Bernardeschi back to the attack to support Champions League debutant Dusan Vlahovic, who has been said to be fit enough for a bench spot.
Villarreal possible starting lineup:
Asenjo; Foyth, Albiol, Torres, Pedraza; Trigueros, Capoue, Parejo; Chukwueze, Dia, Danjuma
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Szczesny; Cuadrado, Danilo, De Ligt, Sandro; Locatelli, Zakaria, McKennie; Bernardeschi, Morata; Vlahovic
Villarreal vs Juventus – Head-to-Head:
Our Prediction: Home Win or Draw
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