The Old Lady and Gli Azzurri will battle it out for the first piece of silverware up for grabs this season. Here’s a preview of Wednesday’s highly-anticipated Juventus vs Napoli clash.

Juventus vs Napoli -- Supercoppa Italiana preview

The first piece of silverware is up for grabs in Italy, with Juventus and Napoli set to lock horns on Wednesday in the Supercoppa Italiana showdown. The rivalry between these two Italian giants has been intense over the past few years, with this Stadio Città del Tricolore promising to be the latest edition to this heated fixture.

The last time these two sides faced off was in last season's Coppa Italia final. After playing out a goalless draw, this winner was decided via spot kicks, with Gattuso's side getting the last laugh, beating the Old Lady 4-2 on penalty shootout.

Since then a lot has changed at the Bianconeri, but not their fortunes. Despite winning the Scudetto last term under Maurizio Sarri, the Turin giants underperformed and thus sacked the Italian gaffer. The iconic Andrea Pirlo was appointed as his successor but the club continue to struggle under the guidance of the novice manager.

The Italian champions have failed to win eight of their opening 17 league fixtures, losing two and drawing six while picking up only nine wins. Their tally of 33 points has them sitting in fifth and are 10 points behind league leaders AC Milan. To make things worse, Cristiano and Co. head into this clash on the back of a crushing defeat at Inter Milan where they lost 2-0 against their fellow title challengers.

Winning the Supercoppa Italiana will ease the pressure on Pirlo but he will have to beat an in-form Napoli on the back of a three-game winning streak. Gli Azzurri enjoyed a tremendous 6-0 victory over Fiorentina in their most recent fixture, with influential captain Lorenzo Insigne grabbing a brace and assisting another goal. That result lifted them up to third in the standings.

This will be the first encounter between these two sides this season. They were initially scheduled to face off on October 4 in the league but that game was postponed as Gattuso's side were ordered not to travel to Turin as they had two players who tested positive for COVID-19. Juventus were awarded the win while Napoli were docked three points, but this decision was later reversed after a successful appeal, meaning the only thing on everyone's mind when they face off on Wednesday will be the silverware.

Team news

Juventus: Pirlo is without De Ligt and Sandro but should welcome back Cuadrado after completing his self-isolation. Unfortunately, Paulo Dybala has not recovered in time for this encounter. Dejan Kulusevski will be fighting with Morata for the honor of being Cristiano's partner up front while Ramsey, Rabiot, Arthur, McKennie, and Chiesa are all vying for a midfield berth.

Napoli: Gattuso will be without Fabian Ruiz and centre-forward Victor Osimhen, which is a huge blow. Furthermore, this game comes to soon for Dries Mertens but the talented Belgian might not be missed due to the excellent form of Lorenzo Insigne, Piotr Zielinski and Hirving Lozano.

Key stats

  • This is Juventus' ninth consecutive appearance in the Supercoppa Italiana.

  • However, the Old Lady have lost four of their last eight appearances in this competition.

  • Napoli have won this tournament only twice in their history, with their two triumphs coming against none other than the Turin giants.

  • Their head-to-head record in the Supercoppa Italiana reads in favor of Napoli, with the Blues winning twice while losing only once to the Bianconeri.

  • With 759 career goals, Cristiano could become the all-time leading scorer in football history should he find the back of the net in this fixture.

Broadcast listings

 

Detalhes do jogo, resultados e informações da transmissão original

Juventus 2 - 0 Napoli

janeiro 20, 2021 3:00Allianz Stadium (Torino)

Este jogo terminou. Abaixo estão as listagens de transmissões originais - Live para este jogo.

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