This Sunday, Juventus will be welcome by Barcelona for their most prestigious meeting in the current pre-season.
After winning their first two summer matches against Cesena and Monza, the Bianconeri are finally set to test themselves against opponents who are on their level.
With all the members of the first squad having returned from their summer vacations, Max Allegri will have a bigger pool of talent to choose from – although the likes of Arthur, Adrien Rabiot and perhaps Paulo Dybala will be unavailable due to injuries.
So let’s have a look at five players that the manager will probably keep a close eye on.
Daniele Rugani
With Merih Demiral gone to Atalanta, Daniele Rugani has moved up a spot in the pecking order. The Italian will get the opportunity to prove himself against the dynamic Barcelona attack, and convince his returning manager of his worthiness for a spot within the squad.
Mattia De Sciglio
Reminiscently to Rugani, the fullback returned following a year on loan. De Sciglio started the pre-season on a high note, but his real first test will come against the Blaugrana.
We all know that Allegri is fond of the player, and a good performance against the Catalans could be enough to fully convince the management of maintaining him for next season.
Filippo Ranocchia
As odd as it may sound, the youngster is in the running for the starting berth against Udinese on the opening day of the season – due to the absences of Arthur, Rabiot and the suspended Weston McKennie.
After scoring a sublime goal against Monza, it would be hard to deny the young midfielder if he manages to impress against Barcelona.
Aaron Ramsey
Due to his shortage of suitors (at least the rich ones), the former Arsenal man will probably remain in Turin, and Allegri believes that he can reignite his playing career by converting him into a deep-lying playmaker.
It goes without saying that we’re all curious to see how this experiment will play out against the Spanish side.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Unfortunately for Barcelona fans, Leo Messi won’t be present on the pitch for their match on Sunday – nor any other match for Barcelona for that matter.
Nonetheless, CR7 is expected to make his pre-season debut against his old rivals, and everyone is awaiting the first signals from the pitch after getting tired of reading about his transfer saga in the tabloids.
