On Wednesday, Juventus earned their first win of the Serie A campaign, after topping Spezia in a back and forth battle. On Sunday, the Old Lady will take on yet another Ligurian opponent, in the hopes of lunching a winning streak.
Max Allegri surely wasn’t happy to wait until the fifth round of the campaign to earn his maiden victory, but will be eager to climb up the table with second a win over Sampdoria this weekend.
In his pre-match press conference, the coach revealed that Mattia Perin will be handed his first start of the season between the posts, while Leonardo Bonucci will maintain his starting position.
“We must face this game by playing well and trying to make one step forward in the table,” Allegri said at his pre-match press conference as translated by Football Italia.
“We won the first game away and we must do the same at home, there will be changes because some players played 6 or 7 matches in the last period.
“Bonucci is an important player for this team, so he plays if he is fit. He may say that he’s tired, but when the game gets closer, he always feels well. I am happy about the four central defenders at my disposal.
“I don’t know if [Paulo] Dybala will start, while [Adrien] Rabiot will surely rest, because he picked up a knock to his ankle so he won’t be called up,”
On another note, the manager reassured the fans on Federico Chiesa’s condition following an injury scare that forced him to leave the pitch against Spezia.
“Federico is feeling well and he can play either on the left and on the right, tomorrow we’ll see.”
“I think Juventus will be able to concede fewer goals, as we are defending well in our own half,” Allegri said.
“When things do not go well, the physical shape is always mentioned [by media]. Against Milan, we made many technical mistakes, so our opponents gained strength, you can’t only defend in football.
“We registered 25 shots on target against Spezia, we created a lot in the first half,” the coach continued.
“Locatelli is doing well, but don’t forget that he arrives from Sassuolo and it’s challenging to play with the Juventus jersey, as the physical and mental efforts required are different,” concluded the manager.
The match starts tomorrow at 12:30 CET as the early Sunday kickoff fixture of the sixth matchday of the Serie A campaign.