Lazio Vs Juventus: Sarri Vs Tudor: Former Hot Duel And Replacement At The Olimpico

JAKARTA - The two teams who are both struggling to meet expectations will meet in Sunday night's Serie A match, October 26, when Juventus travel to Lazio headquarters at Stadio Olimpico.

While the hosts were still stuck at the bottom of the standings, Juventus came to Rome after swallowing two consecutive defeats which exacerbated their situation.

Juventus are now under heavy pressure due to declining domestic performance, and in the middle of last week they faced one of the toughest opponents in the Champions League, Real Madrid.

After recording five draws and one defeat in the last six matches, the Turin team lost again at the Santiago Bernabeu despite a pretty good performance. Dusan Vlahovic and Lois Openda strikers failed to take advantage of chances, before Jude Bellingham's close-range goal became the difference.

With just two points from three Champions League league league league tiers, Juventus are now in a tough situation. Previously they also lost 0-2 to Como, making them fail to score in the last three games more than 300 minutes without a goal since Francisco Conceicao found Villarreal's goal.

The defeat at the Sinigglia Stadio also ended a record 11 matches without Juventus' defeat in Serie A, although most ended in a draw. Now, they have to win an important game against Lazio who are also struggling to find the best form.

Historically, Juventus are rarely blunt at the Olimpico they have only failed to score once in their last 29 away game against Lazio, which could be a positive sign to end their goal drought.

The Return of Maurizio Sarri

Lazio is now again led by Maurizio Sarri, who was replaced by Igor Tudor from March to June 2024. Uniquely, Tudor is now Juventus coach, so this duel brings together two coaches with interesting past relationships.

Sarri had brought Juventus to the ninth Scudetto in a row, but that glory now feels like old memories. After losing three of the four games earlier this season, Lazio slowly rose with a 3-0 win over Genoa, a dramatic draw against Torino, and a solid 0-0 result at Atalanta's home.

Even so, the Biancocelesti are still stuck in the middle board and often have difficulty completing opportunities at home. Since the beginning of last season, they have recorded 10 draws at the Olimpico and only two wins from 15 Serie A home games, with one notch.

Juventus coach Igor Tudor is expected to return Manuel Locatelli to the starting XI after being reserved in Madrid, possibly replacing Weston McKennie in midfield. Juventus is still without Bremer's tough defenders and Juan Cabal's wing due to injury, but the rest are in good shape.

On the front lines, Tudor has not found an ideal combination of Jonathan David, Openda, and Vlahovic. The last name has a good record against Lazio with seven goals, including twice scoring a brace in Serie A.

Meanwhile, Lazio had to return without the main striker Valentin Castelanos. Their condition got worse with a long list of injuries: Nuno Tavares, Nicolo Rovella, Samuel Gigot, Fisayo Dele-Basterior, and Luca Pellegrini are all out. Matteo Cancellieri, who had impressed against Torino, also had a thigh injury.

This match actually has the potential to end in a draw, considering Juventus is the team with the highest number of draws in Serie A since last season, while Lazio have often failed to finish the game at home. But with the host's limping condition and declining confidence, Juventus are predicted to take advantage of the momentum to achieve the much-needed victory.

Estimates of the Lazio Lineup (4-3-3): Provedel; Lazzari, Gila, Romagnoli, Marusic; Guendouzi, Cataldi, Basic; Isaksen, Dia, Zaccagni.

Juventus (3-4-2-1): Di Gregorio; Gatti, Rugani, Kelly; Kalulu, Locatelli, Thuram, Cambiaso; Conceicao, Yildiz; David.