07 April 2017
The tale from Turin
With 19 wins from 27 matches overall and 9 from 13 at home against Chievo, history certainly favours the Bianconeri going into Saturday night’s clash.
Juve have never, ever lost to the Gialloblù in Turin, although they were held to a draw by Rolando Maran’s men at the Stadium last season.
Prior to that 1-1 scoreline in September 2015, the Old Lady had racked up six successive victories over Saturday’s opponents, including three at home.
N.B. supporters, Juve have ALWAYS scored against Chievo in matches played in Turin – their current tally of 27 goals equals an average of three per game… not bad!
The story this season
Victory on Saturday would be Juve’s 32nd in a row at home in Serie A as they look to prolong what is already a record in Italy’s top-flight.
As mooted earlier, and without wanting to tempt any fate at all (!), goals really should be on the cards this weekend:
Massimiliano Allegri’s men have scored in all of their last 21 league games – the longest active run in Serie A – while Chievo have been on the mark in their last seven outings.
The Gialloblù’s recent form is mixed, winning three and losing four of those seven matches, as they’ve consolidated their mid-table position, sitting in 11th place on 38 points at present.
League leaders Juve, meanwhile, will be looking to at least maintain their six-point advantage over nearest rivals Roma with just seven games to play after this weekend.
The men to monitor
Juan Cuadrado was voted MVP for March by Bianconeri supporters earlier this week, and the Colombian will be keen to continue his impressive form against Saturday’s opponents.
Cuadrado has scored three career goals against Chievo, making them one of his favourite teams to face. Fingers crossed for more Juan magic this April.
Should he play at the weekend, Andrea Barzagli will be coming up against his former employers. Barzagli spent the 2003/04 season at Chievo, where he netted three times in 29 appearances.
Ever assured in defence, ‘The Wall’ remains an invaluable member of the Bianconeri’s backline, where he boasts the best percentage of tackles won this season (92.9 per cent).
With eight assists to his name this term, Valter Birsa is comfortably Chievo’s main creative force. Only Napoli’s José Callejon and Lazio’s Felipe Anderson have set up more goals for team-mates in 2016/17. Incidentally, Saturday’s will be the Slovenian’s 100th match for the Gialloblù in Serie A.
Roberto Inglese and Sergio Pellissier, meanwhile, lead Chievo’s scoring charts with seven strikes apiece. Inglese is enjoying a purple patch of late with five goals and two assists in his last nine appearances.
Meanwhile Pellissier, who celebrates his 38th birthday next Wednesday in his 17th season for the Gialloblù, scored against Juve earlier in the campaign at the Stadio Bentegodi – ultimately a 2-1 victory for the Bianconeri.
