Cagliari vs Juventus

Beleaguered Juventus head to the Unipol Domus to lock horns with Serie A relegation fighters Cagliari.

In addition to denying runaway leaders Inter Milan a piece of Serie A history by becoming just the sixth Serie A side to hold them winless this season with a credible 2-2 draw last weekend, Cagliari have solidified their effort to avoid a swift return to Serie B. Claudio Ranieri’s men have pieced together a morale-boosting run of just one defeat across their last eight league outings (W3, D4), including a come-from-behind 2-1 win against fifth-placed Atalanta in their most recent home assignment. That victory forms part of Cagliari’s four-game undefeated league stretch on home turf (W2, D2), which is part of the reason they commence this matchday three points clear of the bottom three. However, they’ve stuttered against high-profile opponents this term despite scoring in five of their six clashes against the current top four (W1, D1, L4).

As for Juventus, last weekend’s scoreless Derby della Mole draw against Torino heightened the pressure on manager Massimiliano Allegri, condemning the record-time Serie A champions to a ninth winless league match in their last 11 (D5, L4). More importantly, that stalemate saw the Turin powerhouse go winless on five successive top-flight travels for the first time since 2010 (D2, L3). Despite racking up three consecutive clean sheets in the build-up to this trip (W2, D1), Allegri’s misfiring squad continues to underperform in front of goal. ‘I Bianconeri’ haven’t scored in three of their last five competitive games, a feat they’ve only experienced once in 11 away league meetings with Cagliari since 2011.