Genoa welcome Juventus to the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Tuesday night in a Serie A encounter that looks tougher on paper than the table suggests. The Grifone sit 12th, six points above the drop zone, while the Bianconeri hold fourth place—just a point clear of Milan and five ahead of a resurgent Roma. With only five match-days left, neither side can afford a slip.
Form & Match Context
Juventus come in unbeaten in eight league games (W5 D3) following their Europa League exit at the hands of Sevilla. Allegri has re-found his pragmatic groove, conceding only three goals in that stretch. Genoa, under Alberto Gilardino, have lost just one of their last five (W2 D2) and edged past Sampdoria and Fiorentina either side of a creditable 1-1 draw at Inter.
Team News
The hosts remain without long-term absentee Mattia Bani, while central midfielder Milan Badelj is a doubt after picking up a knock against Inter. Junior Messias and Albert Gudmundsson are expected to flank leading scorer Albert Retegui in a 3-5-2. Juventus are missing Paul Pogba (suspended) and Federico Chiesa (muscle strain), but Adrien Rabiot passed a late fitness test and starts. The expected XI is Szczesny; Danilo, Bremer, Alex Sandro; Cuadrado, Locatelli, Rabiot, Kostic; Di Maria, Kean, Vlahovic in a 3-4-2-1.
Key Match-up
Genoa’s width provided by full-backs Aaron Martin and Stefano Sabelli will test Juve’s ageing wing-backs. On the flip side, Cuadrado vs ex-Colombian team-mate Johan Vásquez is a duel dripping with narrative; expect plenty of early diagonal switches to isolate Vásquez, who can struggle against direct runners.
Stat Nugget
Juventus have not lost on Genoa’s patch since 2015-16, winning four and drawing two of the last six visits. In that span, the Bianconeri have kept five clean sheets and never allowed more than 0.9 expected goals.
Prediction
The visitors’ defensive structure should nullify a lacklustre Genoa transition game, while Di Maria’s craft and Vlahovic’s willingness to stretch the channels can pick off spaces behind the back three. A low-block chess match eventually opens via a set-piece—Juve have scored six times from corners since the restart—and Allegri’s men edge it.
Correct score pick: Genoa 0-2 Juventus.
