Serie A runners-up Juventus make a routine-looking voyage to Puglia to take on bottom-half strugglers of Lecce on Sunday evening. However, Massimiliano Allegri’s side can’t take anything for granted, as two first-team stars won’t be part of the traveling squad.
During a pre-game conference, Allegri confirmed Adrien Rabiot and Federico Chiesa would have to stay on the sidelines. Both players have been of utmost importance for Juventus this season. And it’s now up to the experienced manager to find a way to make up for their absences.
“The team is good. They had a good training session yesterday. Tomorrow there’ll be no Rabiot and Chiesa,” Allegri said, as quoted by TMW. “Rabiot had a calf strain, while Federico had a flare-up of his knee problem and will be evaluated in the next few days.“
Juventus have enjoyed a near-flawless 2023/24 campaign. Except for a 4-2 defeat to Sassuolo in September, they’ve gone unbeaten in their remaining 19 Serie A outings this season (W15, D4). As such, they commence this round only two points adrift of table-topping Inter.
With Simone Inzaghi’s charges currently in Saudi Arabia for Supercoppa Italiana duties, Juventus could finish Gameweek 21 at the top of the pile with a win at Stadio Via del Mare. Though Chiesa’s injury threatens to decrease Bianconeri’s attacking edge, there’s a silver lining.
Juventus star Dusan Vlahovic has returned to form, netting a brace in a 3-0 win against Sassuolo last time out after heading home a stoppage-time winner against Salernitana on their most recent Serie A travel.
 |
Follow us on Google News for more updates on Serie A and Italian football |