UEFA Champions League Preview: Juventus vs Galatasaray – Team News, Lineups & Prediction | OneFootball

Juventus face a Herculean task of overturning a 5-2 deficit in the return leg of their UEFA Champions League playoff tie against Galatasaray. Allianz Stadium sets the stage for this ‘make or break’ clash between familiar foes.

Teun Koopmeiners’ first-half brace was in vain as Galatasaray seized the numerical advantage to hammer Juventus in the first leg at Rams Park. Juan Cabal’s second-half sending off made the Turkish side’s life a lot easier while intensifying the pressure on the Turin giants ahead of the second leg.

Unable to recover from the Istanbul heartbreak, Juventus suffered a dismal 2-0 home loss to Como last weekend, losing further ground in the race for the Serie A top four. Indeed, Luciano Spalletti’s men are now trailing fourth-placed Roma by four points, with their hopes of dining at Europe’s top table next season at serious risk.

Like Juventus, it was a disappointing weekend for Galatasaray, who fell to a 2-0 defeat at Konyaspor in the Super Lig. That setback has blown the title race in the Turkish top flight wide open, allowing second-placed Fenerbahce to whittle down the gap to only two points. However, Okan Buruk’s team must set their priorities straight ahead of this trip.

Avoiding a three-goal margin defeat is all Galatasaray have to do to reach the Round of 16 for the first time since the 2013/14 season. On the other hand, Juventus need a miracle to turn this tie on its head and avoid consecutive playoff elimination in the Champions League.

Match Preview

Juventus

Overcoming a three-goal deficit doesn’t feel doable from the home fans’ perspective, given that Juventus head into proceedings amid a rough patch. Spalletti’s charges have lost four of their last five outings across all competitions, barring a last-gasp 2-2 home draw against Lazio in Serie A. That result ominously forms part of Juve’s two-game winless home streak (D1, L1).

Saturday’s failure against Como plunged their domestic ambitions into a complete disarray. However, Juventus must park those concerns for now if they’re to pull off an epic comeback or at least salvage some pride here. Encouragingly for the Bianconeri faithful, Spalletti’s men have gone unbeaten in their last five home matches in the Champions League (W3, D2).

Adding to Juve’s optimism, they’ve won their last two European home fixtures without conceding, which could be a recipe for success in this pivotal showdown. Still, it’s worth noting that Juventus have netted three or more goals in only two of their last 12 competitive home games, which is the bare minimum required to take this tie into extra time.

Galatasaray

Despite Saturday’s slip-up at Konyaspor, Galatasaray should still feel confident about successfully negotiating this tie, knowing they had won their five previous outings, netting 3+ goals on each occasion. Another free-scoring showing would only serve to restore a feel-good factor around Buruk’s camp, given that the Turkish heavyweights have already set one foot in the last 16.

However, it’s impossible to put it past Galatasaray to pour more misery on Juventus here, as they’ve avoided defeat in six of their last seven Champions League meetings (W3, D3). Against this backdrop, the Lions have historically struggled on Italian soil, failing to win all 13 previous away clashes against Serie A opposition in UEFA competition (D6, L7).

That’s not the only source for concern. Indeed, the visitors have lost their last two Champions League away matches ‘to nil,’ which means they would be naive to take anything for granted in Turin. Still, the fact that they’ve lost by a 3+ goal margin in just one of their last 27 competitive away fixtures hints that their progression into the next round is virtually a foregone conclusion.

Team News

In addition to the suspended Cabal, Juventus will also be without versatile wingback Andrea Cambiaso, who must serve a yellow-card ban. Moreover, this encounter will come too soon for long-term absentees Arkadiusz Milik and Dusan Vlahovic, with Emil Holm still recovering from a foot injury. On a more positive note, Spalletti will be able to call upon his defensive cornerstone, Gleison Bremer, for this season-defining fixture.

As for Galatasaray, former Juventus man Mario Lemina returns from suspension and looks poised to slot straight back into the midfield setup. Meanwhile, ex-Inter talisman Mauro Icardi is likely to make way for star striker Victor Osimhen in attack, with Noa Lang and Baris Alper Yilmaz expected to start on the wings.

Juventus vs Galatasaray Potential Starting Lineups

Juventus (3-4-2-1): Perin; Gatti, Bremer, Kelly; McKennie, Locatelli, Thuram, Kostic; Conceicao, Yildiz; David.

Galatasaray (4-2-3-1): Cakir; Sallai, Bardakci, Sanchez, Jakobs; Torreira, Lemina; Yilmaz, Sara, Lang; Osimhen.

Juventus vs Galatasaray Prediction

Expecting Juventus to overhaul such a significant deficit against a team of Galatasaray’s caliber would be utopian. However, the hosts seem like decent value to enact revenge for the first-leg fiasco and at least soften the blow of what feels like a near-certain elimination.