Atalanta have not been convincing under Maurizio Sarri and have now lost two straight. Juventus have a stronger squad, home advantage and can take all three points.
Key Stats
- Juventus have won to nil in 3 of their last 5 matches.
- Atalanta have lost their last 2 matches.
HTH
Juventus haven’t beaten Atalanta at home since 2018, a run of eight straight games. They still hold a dominant 76-19 advantage alongside 54 draws.
Juve Back to Winning Ways
Juventus started the season with comfortable wins over Frosinone and Parma.
The Old Lady then had 14-3 shots and 1.59-0.11 xG against AC Milan but needed Federico Gatti’s 91st minute goal to earn a 1-1 draw.
Edon Zhegrova came off the bench to score two late equalisers at Sassuolo but it wasn’t enough, Luciano Spalletti’s side conceding in the 93rd minute in a 3-2 defeat.
Juve got back to winning ways in the Europa League, thumping NEC Nijmegen 5-0 at home. Spalletti switched it up with a back three, Randal Kolo Muani coming off the bench to provide an assist and a goal.
The manager was happy to get back to winning ways: “I’m very pleased with the win and the performance because the team went out onto the pitch with a clear head, turning the doubts that follow defeats into decisions to be made.”
“They managed to capitalise on their determination, they did well. We needed a bit more cohesion and strength at this stage, making a change to how the match then unfolded was the right decision.”
Back to Back Defeats for Atalanta
Atalanta went unbeaten in their opening four matches but their performances were far from convincing. They got past Hapoel Tel Aviv 1-0 on aggregate in the Conference League playoffs.
Maurizio Sarri’s side ran out of luck in a 2-1 defeat at Roma. Éderson opened the scoring but they couldn’t hang on, ending with 33% possession, 6-39 shots and 0.70-2.97 xG.
The Bergamo club are coming off a 2-1 home defeat to Cagliari. They had 22-5 shots and 1.74-1.32 xG, dominating the second half but unable to find the net.
Sarri looked for positives after the match: "In the final stages, it was like there was a wall in the penalty area, not easy to break down, but we already have a foundation that can continue to develop."
"I am very sorry; I feel for the players and fans. But I'm far less worried now than I was after the previous matches."
Predicted Lineups & Team News
Juventus (4-2-3-1) Guglielmo Vicario; Pierre Kalulu, Bremer, Jhon Lucumi, Zeki Celik; Douglas Luiz, Pape Matar Sarr; Francisco Conceição, Weston McKennie, Nico González; Randal Kolo Muani
Spalletti could revert to a back four here and recall a number of players after making changes in the Europa League.
Kamil Grabara is putting pressure on Guglielmo Vicario for a starting spot in goal. Juan Cabal, Khéphren Thuram, Manuel Locatelli, Kenan Yildiz, Jérémie Boga and Jeff Ekhator are all injured.
Atalanta (4-3-3) Marco Carnesecchi; Raoul Bellanova, Odilon Kossounou, Giorgio Scalvini, Lorenzo Bernasconi; Lazar Samardzic, Franck Kessié, Éderson; Charles De Ketelaere, Gianluca Scamacca, Jonathan Rowe
Isak Hien and Kamaldeen Sulemana remain out injured but Thomas Kristensen is gaining fitness are a layoff. Lorenzo Bernasconi is in line to replace Sead Kolasinac at left-back.