Empoli v Juventus

Serie A Week 7 –  Sunday, 2nd October – 11:30 GMT – Stadio Carlo Castellani

Juventus

Despite not putting out the greatest performances, Juventus first defeated Palermo and then dismantled Dinamo Zagreb. As for the Serie A game, the squad and the coach were clearly looking to save energies for the Champions League: it was a blah match, but any victory counts the same. In any case, we had enough chances, but squandered them, and we did not suffer in the back. The biggest positive from these last few bouts is that the defence appears to be back, with three clean sheets in a row.

The Dinamo Zagreb game was a walk in the park, the Croatians had a very poor backline and did not pose any threat to Gianluigi Buffon. Paulo Dybala scored for the first time this season and it was a stunner: hopefully this will really get him going, even though I do not think that the lack of goals really hindered his offensive performances. If anything, having to track back a lot to get the ball and build up the action is what it is really slowing him down, but he has to do that to cover some deficiencies of the midfield. It is not much of an issue because we have another striker who can score all the goals.

Speaking of the midfield, Miralem Pjanic had his best game yet, with a goal and a wonderful assist. The Hernanes reclamation project is progressing nicely and all the credit goes to Massimiliano Allegri who always shielded him from the criticism, even when it was rightful. I still do not quite trust him in big games, but I would give a kidney to avoid seeing Pjanic in front of the defence again and Hernanes being a viable deep-lying midfielder helps a lot for that purpose.

Unfortunately, injuries keep piling up: Daniele Rugani will miss about 45 days with a LCL strain, while Kwadwo Asamoah has a torn meniscus. Medhi Benatia is expected to return after the upcoming break, therefore the defence has no other centre-backs available other than three starters. Of course Stephan Lichsteiner and Patrice Evra can play there in case of emergency and the four-man defence is an option. Andrea Barzagli should have recovered from his little injury.

Miralem Pjanic was dinged up in the Dinamo Zagreb game and his presence on Sunday is in jeopardy but he is trending in the right direction. Massimiliano Allegri put Juan Cuadrado there on Wednesday since the game was already sealed. With Pjanic, the only doubt would be between Hernanes or Mario Lemina, while the most natural midfield without the Bosnian would Lemina on the right-hand, Hernanes in the heart and Sami Khedira on the left-hand. If everything goes well, Stefano Sturaro will play his first minutes of the season.

Alex Sandro would probably be the best fit to serve as box-to-box midfielder if need be. We have the players to field a four-man midfield but I do not think the coach will go there. In any case, Sandro will start on the left, while either Dani Alves or Stephan Lichsteiner will play on the right: it is probably the Swiss train time. Gonzalo Higuain is the starter, but he could be spared in an easy game in favour of Mario Mandzukic.

Probable lineup: 

3-5-2: Buffon; Barzagli, Bonucci, Chiellini; Lichtsteiner, Khedira, Lemina, Pjanic, Sandro; Higuain, Dybala. 

Injuries:

Marchisio (knee), Benatia (hamstring), Rugani (knee), Asamoah (knee), Mandragora (foot).

Suspensions:

None. 

Empoli

Empoli have struggled badly at the beginning of the season, but that is not a surprise. For two summers in a row, they have taken a toll in the summer, losing not only two good coaches but also a slew of excellent players. They had a slow start last year as well, then Marco Giampaolo struck gold putting Leandro Paredes as deep-lying playmaker and assembling a very quality midfielder.

In the summer window, Giampaolo decided to not renew his contract, maybe hoping that he would be hired by Milan and then landed at Sampdoria, so they promoted the lead assistant Giovanni Martusciello, who also worked with Maurizio Sarri. They sold Lorenzo Tonelli and Mario Rui and the loanees Piotr Zielinski and Paredes returned to their respective clubs. So four starters are gone. Federico Barba returned from a failed stint at Stuttgart, but he has not really been healthy yet, and they added some interesting youngsters, but the defence and the midfield are still under construction.

Curiously though, the attack has been the biggest disappointment: they have added Alberto Gilardino, who will inherit Roberto Maccarone’s spot, but so far they have scored only two goals, against Crotone. Riccardo Saponara has not been himself this season, maybe he is a little bummed that he did not get to transfer in the summer, and they have very little going on upfront if the no.10 does not feed them.

They will be a little depleted in this one, especially in the defence: Vincent Laurini is out with a calf problem, Andrea Costa has a sore ankle and Barba is expected to be sidelined as well. The veteran Riccardo Zambelli will fill in at right-back, with Uros Cosic in the middle. Giuseppe Bellusci is banged up but should play, otherwise Frederic Veseli will make his debut with the club.

They have some options in the midfield, but the feeling is that they have not found the right combination yet. José Mauri has been brought in at the last minute when they realized that they could not spend the whole season with Assane Diousse and Riccardo Maiello in front of the defence. He has a bruised thigh, but should be able to go. They have been using Andres Tello and Daniele Croce as box-to-box midfielders, but really any mix between them, Rade Krunic and Marcel Buchel could be the right one.

They still have the same infrastructure of the previous years, a diamond formation, but so far they have not had the same offensive punch, nor same exciting style. At the end of the day, if they can not control the ball, their defence is just not that good, even when fully healthy. Of course they will be desperate for points and they will play with a lot of enthusiasm in front of a sold-out crowd, but right now they are not in good condition.

Probable lineup: 

4-3-1-2: Skorupski; Zambelli, Bellusci, Cosic, Pasqual; Tello, Mauri, Croce; Saponara; Maccarone, Pucciarelli. 

Injuries:

Laurini (calf), Costa (ankle), Barba. 

Suspensions:

None. 

Formation