As Juventus prepare to take on Manchester City in the Champions League, on Wednesday, there is a clear feeling that these two clubs are searching for some form.
By Kaustubh Pandey
It is fitting that both Juve and City were held to draws at the weekend. Thiago Motta was sent the stands as his side just about managed to take a point from the game against his former club Bologna, as Pep Guardiola‘s Citizens picked up a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace.
Both sides have fallen away from the title races in their respective leagues too. Juve are sixth in the Serie A table, seven points away from league leading Atalanta. City are fourth in the Premier League and are eight points away from Liverpool.
The Bianconeri have eight points in the Champions League and so do City, as both of them look to enter the top eight. There is also a correlation between Motta and Guardiola, with the ex-Italy midfielder having sought inspiration from the Spaniard in the past.
It is quite apparent that both currently face problems at their respective clubs.
Juventus’ struggling attack
While Juve have the most number of cleansheets in Serie A, their attack has been very disappointing.
They have the eighth-highest xG in Serie A and they’ve registered four shots on target per game, which is the ninth-best tally in the league.
Motta is still struggling to tie the attack together and quite a bit of it is because of injuries, a lot of it is because of the profiles of players. Joshua Zirkzee isn’t with him anymore and he has more of a poacher in striker Dušan Vlahović, meaning that Motta’s attacking setup looks disjointed at times.
The Serbian’s last goal in Serie A came in October and the Bianconeri have relied on goals from Samuel Mbangula and Kenan Yıldız, with Nico González injured and Teun Koopmeiners yet to settle in fully.
City’s porous defence
As has been widely documented, Guardiola’s side have suffered from Rodri‘s absence but their problems do go beyond that.
They have the 11th worst xG conceded figure in the Premier League, which shows that the Spaniard hasn’t quite adapted to the midfielder’s injury and City’s aging squad is now slowly but surely showing more and more vulnerabilities.
They have shown a tendency to get exposed on the break and Juve, who do have quick and young players in Yıldız and Mbangula would love to take advantage of that weakness.
Juve have big injury issues
Juve are going through injury issues, with both Bremer and Juan Cabal out due to ACL injuries. Douglas Luiz and Gonzalez are also out, with Arek Milik expected to only return next year. Andrea Cambiaso, who has impressed this season, could also miss the game.
City have problems of their own
Rodri and Oscar Bobb are long-term injury absentees, but Mateo Kovačić and John Stones are also out. Both Manuel Akanji and Nathan Aké also picked up injuries in recent weeks and will miss the clash in Turin.
Prediction
It would be a battle of Juve’s misfiring attack and City’s chaotic defending. Could one cancel out the other? Or could Juve snatch three points in this one?
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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