Udinese and Juventus will hope the new season can change their fortunes when they kick things off in the 2023/24 Serie A campaign on Sunday. However, neutral supporters would be wise to refrain from setting high expectations for this fixture.
Udinese’s fifth-longest active Serie A stay is set for a 29th consecutive season in the top flight. However, the reasons for optimism are few. Andrea Sottil’s men have been average in recent years, and that’s to say the least. They’ve ranged between 12th and 14th across the last seven seasons.
With that in mind, Udinese should be relatively safe from dreaded relegation conversations. But they seem equally well adrift of the European qualification norm. Mid-table lethargy has been their comfort zone for almost a decade now. Barring a major development, it should stay that way in 2023/24.
Sottil’s men have spent most of the summer trying to fend off a host of domestic suitors for Lazar Samardzic. After Inter and Juventus, Lazio have been the latest team to display an interest in the Serbian prodigy. With the time spare they had left, Udinese brokered several arrivals from Watford.
Domingos Quina and Christian Kabasele swapped England for the Dacia Arena. The same goes for Jordan Zemura, who left Bournemouth to join Udinese. Unlike their hosts, Juventus might have had the quietest transfer window in the 21st century. And it’s not a good thing, considering Massimiliano Allegri desperately needs reinforcements.
Except for Timothy Weah’s arrival from Lille, Juventus have wasted the rest of the summer on a wild goose chase. From a futile attempt to arrange a swap deal for Dusan Vlahovic and Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku to a busted bid to bring Franck Kessie to Serie A, they couldn’t catch a break these past couple of months.
The club’s illicit transfer activity in recent years finally took its toll last season. In addition to being punished with a ten-point deduction in Serie A, Juventus were handed a one-year ban by UEFA, bringing their 11-year stint in European football to a bitter halt. It all looks doom and gloom from the Turin fans’ point of view.
However, the new season may offer Juventus a fresh start, or not? Let’s find out.
Match Preview
Udinese
Udinese’s well-documented perennial mid-table struggle has often found the tone set in the early exchanges. I Friulani have won their opening league matches only once in the last seven campaigns (D2, L4). But a 4-1 thumping of lower-league Catanzaro in the maiden Coppa Italia round a week ago might change the narrative this season.
Juventus are not the ideal opposition to help Udinese flip the script. Sottil’s men have suffered as many as 13 defeats in their last 16 encounters against the record-time Italian champions (D2, L1). That run includes a narrow 1-0 loss in this corresponding match-up on the final 2022/23 weekend.
Player to Watch: Beto
It’s unfathomable how top Italian clubs aren’t circling around Beto. The 25-year-old striker bagged ten goals in 33 league appearances last season en route to finishing as Udinese’s top scorer for the second year running.
Juventus
Plagued by pilling off-field issues, Juventus fans would be forgiven for having low expectations ahead of the new season. As pinpointed in our season preview, Allegri’s primary assignment in 2023/24 will be reinstating I Bianconeri as the Serie A top-four contenders. Anything more would be like winning a lottery.
It will be easier said than done, especially considering the visitors’ travel sickness. Before posting the abovementioned win at the Dacia Arena, Juventus had only emerged victorious once on their previous eight road trips in all competitions (D3, L4). It’s needless to say that they failed to score more than once in all seven winless outings during that stretch.
Player to Watch: Federico Chiesa
Despite being heavily linked with a summer exit, Federico Chiesa has stayed at Juventus after being promised a more prominent role this season. The quicksilver winger has decided both previous meetings between Allegri’s side and Udinese, scoring and assisting the only goal seen on a given day.
Team News
The upcoming season opener will come too early for long-term Udinese absentee Gerard Deulofeu. Enzo Ebosse and Kingsley Ehizibue will keep the Spaniard company in the stands as both have yet to recover from knee injuries.
As for Juventus, Mattia De Sciglio and Paul Pogba are not in contention for the matchday squad. But Nicolo Fagioli could be passed fit in time to take this trip after being diagnosed with a minor collarbone injury.
Udinese vs Juventus Potential Lineups
Udinese (3-5-2): Marco Silvestri; Neheun Perez, Jaka Bijol, Adam Masina; Festy Ebosele, Oier Zarraga, Walace, Sandi Lovric, Jordan Zemura; Florian Thauvin, Beto.
Juventus (3-5-2): Wojciech Szczesny; Federico Gatti, Gleison Bremer, Danilo; Timothy Weah, Fabio Miretti, Manuel Locatelli, Adrien Rabiot, Filip Kostic; Federico Chiesa, Dusan Vlahovic.
Udinese vs Juventus Prediction
This encounter has a tepid 0-0 scoreline written all over it. With a bit of luck, the managers could surprise us, but both are known for their defensive-minded football.
Prediction: Draw
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