Juventus vs NEC Nijmegen – Predicted lineup and team news

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·17 September 2026

Juventus vs NEC Nijmegen – Predicted lineup and team news

Juventus are set to begin their Europa League journey with a home match against NEC Nijmegen at the Allianz Stadium on Thursday evening.

The Italian giants head into this European opener after a shaky and inconsistent start to their Serie A campaign under boss Luciano Spalletti. So far, they have secured victories in just two of their first four league games, with clean sheets recorded in wins against Frosinone and Parma. But their form took a hit after a goalless stalemate with AC Milan, and things worsened with a surprising 3–2 loss to Sassuolo at the weekend, which highlighted frailties at the back as injury problems continue to mount.

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Juventus team news

Ahead of this Europa League fixture, Juventus are dealing with a major selection headache, although there was some positive news as Andrea Cambiaso and Weston McKennie returned to full training.

Even so, the squad is badly stretched in every area. Skipper Manuel Locatelli remains out for an extended period after undergoing knee surgery, while Kenan Yildiz, Khephren Thuram, Jeremie Boga, Jeff Ekhator, Arkadiusz Milik, and Juan Cabal are all ruled out through injury.

At the back, Lloyd Kelly cannot feature because of a suspension carried over from European competition.

Making matters worse, Edon Zhegrova—who netted twice in the recent league win over Sassuolo—is not eligible to play after being left out of Juventus’s registered UEFA squad for this phase.

As a result, Spalletti is expected to field a much-changed lineup, turning to younger options such as Kerim Alajbegović to fill the gaps.