5 reasons Juventus could struggle against Lyon | UEFA Champions League 2019-20

Juventus have been in poor form of late
Juventus have been in poor form of late

Juventus will be looking to overturn a 1 goal deficit as they host Olympique Lyon at the Allianz Stadium tonight. Juventus put on a dismal performance when the teams met for the first leg of their UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie and suffered a 1-0 defeat.

The Bianconeri have suffered from a dip in form of late and Lyon will be looking to capitalize and hold them at bay for 90 minutes. On the domestic front, Sarri's men clinched their 9th consecutive Scudetto while Lyon failed to qualify for the Ligue 1 after the season was cut short due to the Covid pandemic.

Juventus are not going to have it easy in the second leg and let's take a look at 5 reasons why they could struggle.

5 reasons Juventus could struggle against Lyon


#5 Lyon are less fatigued

Olympique Lyon v Juventus - UEFA Champions League Round of 16: First Leg
Olympique Lyon v Juventus - UEFA Champions League Round of 16: First Leg

Lyon have played a total of 4 matches in the past month with their last game coming against Paris Saint-Germain in the Coupe de la Ligue final last Saturday. In the same time frame, Juventus have played 8 games and they lost their latest one against Roma by 3 goals to 1 on Sunday.

As such, Juventus will have to do with tired legs while Lyon players should be feeling well rested and fresh. That does not bode well for the Bianconeri as they will have to work incredibly hard to overturn the deficit.

#4 Sarri's philosophy is yet to take off at Juventus

Maurizio Sarri
Maurizio Sarri

Maurizio Sarri was brought in a bid to move towards a more expansive, possession-based attacking brand of football. Detractors were quick to judge him saying that he is not a good cultural fit.

However, such a transformation was always going to be difficult for Juventus. They have an ageing squad and Sarri's system works best when players can cover each and every blade of grass. He's also had to play to the strengths of the squad he inherited.

As a result, it is a Sarri side that exhibits a lot of the shortcomings of his former teams without much of their merits. As such, Juventus are currently struggling as a side that's been caught shackled in transformation.


Also read: Manchester City vs Real Madrid: 5 players to watch out for | UEFA Champions League 2019-20

#3 Juventus defence has been poor

Can the Juve defence not be leaky tonight?
Can the Juve defence not be leaky tonight?

Following the restart, Juventus have been fragile defensively and this has contributed greatly to their poor form. They have conceded 19 goals from 14 games after the restart.

Going into the home game without an away goal, Juventus will need to shore up their defence and cannot afford Lyon the chance to pick up an away goal as then it will make life twice as difficult for the Serie A champions.

Even Sarri has admitted that Juventus will need to repair their defence ahead of the second leg against Lyon as they simply cannot afford to slip up.

#2 Memphis Depay

Memphis Depay
Memphis Depay

Memphis Depay, Olympique Lyon's star attacker, is back after rupturing his Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and is expected to pose a lot of trouble to an already struggling Juventus defence.

The former Manchester United forward has scored 5 goals from as many UEFA Champions League games and is hopeful of completing an upset against Juventus. Speaking ahead of the match, Depay said,

"I must say the record says I've been quite successful in the Champions League this season,"
"I've played five games and [on Friday] I'll look ahead and try to do my best to do the same thing. I think the whole team deserves credit for the first game that they played against Juve. It was a pity I couldn't play but the team spirit and even the fans in the stadium – everything was great.
"We have to do it without the fans but still with the full squad, the staff and everybody involved. We have a great team spirit and I believe we can get the job done."

#1 No away goals

Olympique Lyon v Juventus - UEFA Champions League Round of 16: First Leg
Olympique Lyon v Juventus - UEFA Champions League Round of 16: First Leg

A lack of away goals is Juventus' main problem going into the tie as they absolutely have to go for the kill tonight. They'll need to be at the top of their game both defensively and offensively.

If Juventus do concede a goal, then they'll need to win the game by a margin of two goals. Given the terrible form that Juventus are in, having lost 3 of their last 4 matches and conceded 7 goals in them, this could prove to be quite a tough proposition for Maurizio Sarri and co.

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Edited by Shambhu Ajith