Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri has confirmed star striker Dusan Vlahovic won’t be available for selection this weekend. The record-time Serie A champions travel to the Gewiss Stadium to encounter Atalanta in Sunday’s mouth-watering league contest without their standout forward.
Vlahovic wasn’t in the squad in midweek Serie A action as Juventus eked out a narrow 1-0 home victory over early surprise package Lecce, courtesy of Arkadiusz Milik’s second-half winner. However, the Polish striker suffered a knock during the game and will join the Serbian on the sidelines.
“Unfortunately, Vlahovic will not be there tomorrow,” the Juventus coach told Gazzetta dello Sport. “He has the usual back problem that stopped him last week. Today, he had a lot of pain, and at this point, it is better to keep him still to make him recover completely.“
Allegri also took stook of Milik’s fitness, suggesting Juventus may have to rely on forgotten forward Moise Kean on Sunday.
“Kean will return. But Milik won’t be there. He felt pain in his calf after the Lecce game. We prefer to have him fully recovered,” Allegri concluded.
Juventus responded well to last weekend’s humbling at the hands of Sassuolo. But their performance in the abovementioned win over Lecce flattered to deceive, especially in the first half. Allegri’s men will have to improve if they’re to get some points on the board against Atalanta.
Gian Piero Gasperini’s men have only lost once in their last seven Serie A matches against Juventus.
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