Honing in on a top-six finish, or perhaps even better, Juventus aim to continue their surge up the Serie A standings on Saturday, when they host lowly Hellas Verona.

After victory in the Derby d'Italia just before the international break, Juve had won seven of their last eight games; by contrast, Hellas have only four wins to their name all season - and none away from home.

Match preview

The latest page in an often bitter rivalry between two Calcio giants was written in Serie A's final match of March, as Juventus came out on top in a controversial clash with Inter Milan.

Emerging 1-0 winners from a bad-tempered affair at San Siro, Juve got the better of their second-city counterparts for the second time this season after a superb Filip Kostic strike split the sides; Adrien Rabiot had appeared to handle the ball during the build-up, but a long VAR check confirmed the goal would stand.

Amid much animosity at the final whistle, both teams had a man dismissed, but notwithstanding a senseless sending-off for Leandro Paredes, victory over the old enemy keeps the Bianconeri close to the top six - they trail Atalanta by just four points - and only seven points shy of fourth-placed Milan.

In addition to their upcoming Europa League tie against Sporting CP, another date with Inter in the Coppa Italia semi-finals also awaits, all of which paints a much brighter picture than when Juventus first received the body blow of a 15-point penalty at the start of the year.

In fact, over the last 20 rounds, only Scudetto favourites Napoli have earned more points than Max Allegri's men, who have accrued at least eight more than anyone else during that time - thanks largely to a watertight defence and Angel Di Maria's return to form.

As if that were not enough, Juve resume their campaign against a club they have never lost to at home in Serie A: to date, they have won 26 and drawn five versus Verona in Turin.

Most recently, Hellas have lost both of these teams' last two meetings without even scoring a goal, having suffered a narrow 1-0 loss in November's reverse fixture when Moise Kean netted the only goal at Stadio Bentegodi.

They sorely need a change of those fortunes, then, as points have become ever more precious to the struggling Scaligeri following a worrying downturn during March.

Losing 3-1 at relegation rivals Sampdoria last time out leaves Verona five points adrift of safety and still without a single away victory in the 2022-23 campaign - and that setback followed two draws and two defeats from their previous four fixtures.

After a mini-revival to start the calendar year, a meagre tally of five goals from eight games tells the tale of their recent decline, which will have coach Marco Zaffaroni concerned about both his club's future and his own.

With the departure of Igor Tudor last summer went Verona's ambitions of a fourth straight top-half finish, and after Zaffaroni's predecessors Gabriele Cioffi and Salvatore Bocchetti both failed to turn things around, time is running out for the current incumbent to stop them sliding into Serie B.

Team News

In addition to captain Leonardo Bonucci, who withdrew from Italy duty because of injury, Juventus will be without Paul Pogba again this weekend, and the maverick midfielder may not return until mid-April.

Midfield duo Adrien Rabiot and Leandro Paredes are both ruled out by suspension, but Arkaduisz Milik and Fabio Miretti are back in the fold following injuries.

Filip Kostic (Achilles) and Federico Chiesa (knee) are not fully fit, but Juan Cuadrado is ready and available to make his 300th appearance for the club in all competitions.

Angel Di Maria or Moise Kean should start in support of Dusan Vlahovic up front, though the latter - who scored on his Juve debut against Verona last February - has scored just three goals in his last 11 Serie A games; that contrasts with 10 in his last 11 for Serbia.

Verona, meanwhile, will have Isak Hien back to boost their defensive line, and the Sweden international should slot straight into the back three as Diego Coppola serves a suspension.

Further forward, Darko Lazovic may miss out due to a muscular problem, so Cyril Ngonge could start behind the visitors' lone striker - either Milan Djuric or Adolfo Gaich, as Thomas Henry has been ruled out for the rest of the season.

Juventus possible starting lineup:
Szczesny; Danilo, Bremer, Gatti; Cuadrado, Fagioli, Locatelli, Barrenechea, Kostic; Di Maria; Vlahovic

Hellas Verona possible starting lineup:
Montipo; Magnani, Hien, Dawidowicz; Faraoni, Veloso, Tameze, Doig; Duda, Ngonge; Gaich

We say: Juventus 2-0 Hellas Verona

While Verona have earned the fewest away points in Serie A so far - five from 13 games - only Napoli have racked up more on home soil than Juventus. Given both teams' trends just before the break, then, Saturday's contest should prove a straightforward success for the Old Lady.


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