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Juventus and AS Roma are two sides that foster title aspirations as they head into a crucial clash on Saturday.
Juventus will host rivals AS Roma at the Allianz Stadium on Saturday and a win is of utmost importance to both parties. AS Roma are currently at third on the Serie A table with 40 points. Juventus are fourth with 39 but they have a game in hand and as such, a win will act as the first step towards steering clear of AS Roma.
The Bianconeri are chasing a tenth consecutive Serie A title. Juventus embarked on a five-match winning streak since suffering a defeat against Inter Milan. They were able to exact revenge on the Nerazzurri in their latest outing in the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final thanks to a brace from Cristiano Ronaldo.
However, they are still seven points behind AC Milan who top the table. Although they have a game in hand, Juventus cannot afford to slip up at this point as the Milan teams are both in good shape and could pull away and go out of sight.
Meanwhile, AS Roma have had quite a few issues, both internal and external, to deal with over the past several weeks. They were able to pip Juventus to the signature of Bryan Reynolds from FC Dallas. They will, however, need to dig really deep to eke out a positive result against an in-form Juventus side.
Juventus vs AS Roma Head-to-Head
In the last 10 meetings between the two storied rivals, Juventus have been the more dominant side. They have won five times while AS Roma have won three while two matches have ended as draws.
The last time these two sides met was in September and they played out a 2-2 draw.
Juventus form guide: W-W-W-W-W
AS Roma form guide: D-L-L-W-W
Juventus vs AS Roma Team News
Juventus
Paulo Dybala could return for the match against AS Roma but his featuring is not a certainty yet. Andrea Pirlo does not have any other injury concerns.
Injuries: None
Doubtful: Paulo Dybala
Suspensions: None
AS Roma
As for AS Roma, Chris Smalling is likely to be sidelined with a strain in his left thigh. Nicolo Zanioli is a long-term absentee for the Giallorossi and Pedro Rodriguez is also expected to miss out.
Injuries: Chris Smalling, Nicolo Zanioli and Pedro Rodriguez
Doubtful: None
Suspensions: None
Juventus vs AS Roma Predicted Lineups
Juventus Predicted XI (4-4-2): Wojciech Szczesny, Juan Cuadrado, Leonardo Bonucci, Matthijs de Ligt, Alex Sandro, Weston McKennie, Adrien Rabiot, Aaron Ramsey, Federico Chiesa, Alvaro Morata, Cristiano Ronaldo
Roma Predicted XI (3-4-2-1): Pau Lopez; Gianluca Mancini, Roger Ibanez, Davide Santon; Rick Karsdorp, Gianluca Villar, Jordan Veretout, Leonardo Spinazzola; Lorenzo Pellegrini, Henrikh Mkhitaryan; Borja Mayoral
Juventus vs AS Roma Prediction
This match looks set to be a cracker given what is at stake. We are leaning towards the Bianconeri as they will be pumped after beating Inter Milan and are on a five match winning streak as opposed to AS Roma who have had a little too much on their plate over the past month.
Prediction: Juventus 2-1 AS Roma
