Juventus return to the Allianz Stadium on Saturday evening for their first home match of the Serie A season, welcoming a young Parma side that has not won in Turin since 2011. Kickoff is set for 20:45, and the Bianconeri are eager to follow up their narrow 1-0 victory at Frosinone, a result sealed by a Bremer goal.
Luciano Spalletti’s men, however, face the fixture with an emergency midfield. Only three natural central midfielders are available: Manuel Locatelli, Teun Koopmeiners, and Douglas Luiz. The absences have sparked fury among the Juventus fanbase, especially after the club failed to land Franck Kessie. “Two midfielders and the club only thinks about selling players,” one supporter wrote on social media. Another added: “This is embarrassing.”
The official lineups confirmed a 4-2-3-1 formation for the hosts, with Guglielmo Vicario in goal despite his early exit in the match against Frosinone. The defense lines up with Pierre Kalulu, Gleison Bremer, Johan Lucumì, and Zeki Celik. In midfield, Locatelli and Douglas Luiz anchor, while Francisco Conceiçao, Jonathan David, and Jérémie Boga support striker Randal Kolo Muani. Notably, 18-year-old Bosnian forward Kerim Alajbegovic is on the bench, with David preferred in the attacking midfield role.
Parma, under coach Carlos Cuesta, arrive with the youngest squad in Serie A, averaging 23.4 years. They will take on a Juventus side that is the third oldest in the division at 27.5. The visitors lost their opener at home to Cagliari and are desperate to bounce back. Their lineup sees Federico Corvi in goal, a back four of Enrico Del Prato, Alessandro Troilo, Luka Drobnic, and Emanuele Valeri, with a midfield trio of Pedro Ordoñez, Moussa Keita, and Adrián Bernabé. Up front, the trident is composed of Sascha Britschgi, Simone Lontani, and El Bilal Touré.
Juventus will have to cope without Kenan Yildiz, who is set for surgery after the injury he suffered at Frosinone and will be out for months. Weston McKennie is also absent with muscle fatigue, while Khephren Thuram continues to struggle with a knee problem that has kept him sidelined all season. Edon Zhegrova was a surprise exclusion, with reports linking him to Lazio and Al Ittihad. The club, however, welcomed back Kamil Grabara, the new Polish goalkeeper, and Federico Gatti, who had missed the opener after a bizarre incident involving a fan’s tackle during a family day at the stadium. Young striker Jeff Ekhator earned his first call-up, but no Next Gen players were included, a decision that further angered supporters.
The historical backdrop is daunting for Parma. Since the Juventus Stadium opened in the 2011-12 season, the Crociati have never won here. Their last triumph in Turin came on 6 January 2011, when they thrashed Juventus 4-1 at the Olimpico, with a double from Sebastian Giovinco and goals from Hernan Crespo and Raffaele Palladino. Older fans still cherish the 4-2 victory at the Delle Alpi in February 1999, when Crespo scored a hat-trick. More recent meetings have produced goals, including a 3-3 draw in 2019. Last season, Juventus won 4-1 at the Tardini and 2-0 at this stadium, with David and Dušan Vlahović on target.
For this match, the official lineup from Gazzetta dello Sport lists Vicario; Kalulu, Bremer, Lucumì, Celik; Locatelli, Douglas Luiz; Conceiçao, David, Boga; Kolo Muani. Parma respond with Corvi; Del Prato, Troilo, Drobnic, Valeri; Ordoñez, Keita, Bernabé; Britschgi, Lontani, Touré. The match is being broadcast exclusively on DAZN.
