Champions League Preview: Juventus vs. Stuttgart
Today at 10:10 PM
After a so-so showing over the weekend, Juve now heads back to Europe where they have two wins in two.
While we are a place that doesn't go over the top when it comes to Juventus-related things in small sample sizes, one thing is for certain through their first two fixtures back in the Champions League this season: they most certainly aren't lacking for any sort of boring moments in Europe — good or not-so-good.
In those first two games against continental competition, Thiago Motta's squad is amongst a group of teams that have scored six goals thus far — which is a good sign considering almost all of those clubs have won their first two UCL games to begin the new-look "league phase." (Five teams have scored six goals thus far, which is the third-most behind Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, with only Baecelona and Celtic not 2-for-2 to start things out.)
The thing is, now they have to try and keep the good times going in Europe.
Tuesday night will be the latest measuring stick for Motta and his squad in the Champions League, as German side Stuttgart rolls into the Juventus Stadium to try and hand the Bianconeri their first loss this season. Juve's unbeaten in all 10 of their games to begin Motta's reign on the sideline, with the Champions League providing some of the most memorable moments to date. That's especially true when we go back three weeks to the last time Juventus played a European fixture, with another Bundesliga side in the form of RB Leipzig being on the receiving end of one of the better comebacks we've seen from the Bianconeri in recent memory despite being down a man.
So here comes Stuttgart, a team that certainly did not have a good weekend when they made the trip over to Munich to face Bayern. The 4-0 loss extended what has been a tough run of form in the Bundesliga as of late for Sebastian Hoeneß's squad. Stuttgart will stroll into Turin without a win in their last four games in all competitions, with their last win coming on Sept. 22 against Borussia Dortmund. (Yes, a massive 5-1 win over the same Dortmund side that currently leads the UCL in goals scored.)
Stuttgart has just one point in their first two Champions League fixtures, with a loss to reigning champions Real Madrid and then a 1-1 draw with Sparta Prague prior to the international break.
But if you think that Juve are reading much into how things have gone for Stuttgart are late, you just need to go ahead and read what Motta had to say about Tuesday night's opponent.
"Stuttgart play well, they are very good at pressing first and organizing themselves, building a line of five that is difficult to overcome," Motta said during Monday's pre-match press conference. "I like them a lot, it will be a beautiful game to play, and we will have to be complete, as I think the Germans are, preventing them from playing a comfortable game."
How Juventus handle Stuttgart's press, an area they struggled with during the time in which Lazio had 11 men on the field on Saturday, will obviously go a huge way in how things go Tuesday night. Will Juve struggle to move the ball and misplace a bunch of passes, or will their ability to make quick passes into space be the things that unlock Stuttgart's press and then create a good amount of opportunities. (Then comes finishing said opportunities, of course, but we know that by now.)
Just like over the weekend, Motta's squad will be far from full strength due to injuries and suspensions, but will welcome back a couple of players in Weston McKennie (injury) and Francisco Conceição (suspension). So, while Juve's best player (Gleison Bremer), most expensive summer signing (Teun Koopmeiners) and new starting goalkeeper (Michele Di Gregorio) will all be missing from the matchup with Stuttgart, Motta will at least have a few more options to work with — especially when it comes to Conceição and the ripple effect in the starting lineup that will have.
So while the squad may still not be at full strength — and won't be 100% at full strength knowing just how long Bremer is going to be out for the rest of this season — this is another one of the important fixtures to come out of the international break just like every single one of these Champions League matchups are. Another game arrives and Juventus' unbeaten run under Motta is again put on the line.
I can tell you this, though: Juve going 3-for-3 to begin this UCL league phase, that is going to go a long way knowing that the European fixtures the rest of the way aren't going to get much easier as fall goes on and then turns to winter. And as we all see the movement of the big UCL league phase table with every matchday coming and going, the more you win, the more you get to enjoy just seeing all the chaos happen in the rungs below you.
TEAM NEWS
- The injury list is still somewhat crowded for Juventus. Thiago Motta will be without Bremer, Koopmeiners, Nico Gonzalez and Arek Milik for Stuttgart's visit to Turin on Tuesday night.
- The one name that isn't on the injured list is that of Weston McKennie, who Motta said will be available — and possibly return to the starting lineup! — after missing out on the win over Lazio due to a slight knock he picked up during international duty with the USMNT.
- Mattia Perin will get the start in goal for Juventus against Stuttgart as Di Gregorio serves his suspension for being sent off in the second half against RB Leipzig three weeks ago.
- Motta said that Andrea Cambiaso could serve as Juve's captain again on Tuesday night. Juve's win over Lazio was the first time Cambiaso, a boyhood Juventino, wore the captain's armband.
- In response to a question about Juventus' struggles to score when the opponent sits deep like Lazio did after they went down to 10 men, Motta quickly replied: "Juventus are not the only team struggling against teams that sit deep. Tell me another team that doesn't find it difficult."
- That said, Juve have not found any issues scoring in the Champions League, with three-goal outings against both PSV Eindhoven and RB Leipzig to begin the new "league phase" of the competition.
JUVENTUS PLAYER TO WATCH
We knew that Juventus were going to be without one of their best offensive weapons over the weekend because Serie A decision makers are cruel and didn't want to overturn a questionable suspension.
That means Juve's latest Champions League fixture is also the return to the field for everybody's new favorite Short King. All hail our new favorite Short King.
Francisco Conceição showed what he's capable of the last time Juve took the field against a German opponent. And Juve showed this past Saturday what they were missing without him on the field during the slim 1-0 win over Lazio as Conceição sat things out due to his one-game suspension.
Considering what happened this past weekend and how Conceição played the last time he was facing a team from Germany, is it safe to say our Short King will be welcomed back to the starting lineup with open arms?
Yes, yes he will. Thiago Motta might play it cool, but I won't. Welcome back, Chico. The right wing is yours and now we are ready to watch you cook out wide once again.
Because of when Conceição signed with Juventus and then dealing with an early injury coming out of the first international break, he doesn't have the huge number of minutes played compared to some of his teammates. Hell, Juve's backup keeper, Mattia Perin, has played more minutes in Serie A than the diminutive Portuguese winger. But, in the minutes that he has played both domestically and in the Champions League, Conceição has shown to be one of the most dangerous Juve attackers so far this season.
He's shown it off the bench in Leipzig. Now, with a nice little bit of rest thanks to his (unfair) suspension, he's probably raring to go to show it as a piece of the starting lineup.
And let's face it, Juventus need it — especially after a weekend in which his presence was very much sorely missed.
MATCH INFO
When: Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024.
Where: Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy.
Official kickoff time: 9 p.m. in Italy and the Central European time zone, 8 p.m. in the United Kingdom, 3 p.m. Eastern time, 12 p.m. Pacific time.
HOW TO WATCH
Television: TNT Sports 4 (United Kingdom); Sky Sport 252, Sky Sport 4K (Italy).
Online/Streaming:Paramount+ (United States); fuboTV Canada (Canada); OneFootball.com (United Kingdom); Sky Go Italia, NOW TV (Italy).
Other live viewing options can be found here, and as always, you can also follow along with us live and all the stupid things we say on Twitter. If you haven't already, join the community on Black & White & Read All Over, and join in the discussion below.
