Juventus will be eager to strengthen their grip on the fourth spot as Igor Tudor’s away credentials will be tested with a trip to struggling Parma.

Cristian Chivu’s reign as Parma’s new boss began with a 2-0 victory over top-four chasing Bologna, although since then the struggling Serie A side have gone on a winless run stretching to six games. Those include five consecutive draws leading to this big clash with Juventus at home.

Despite dropping those many points leading to this game, Parma still have a narrow four-point gap between themselves and the relegation zone. With six games pending in the Serie A season. Chivu will want his team to show character in another big game and get something out of the result, or else it could lead to a nervy finish into the latter stages of the season.

While Chivu continues to struggle for a win, Juventus boss Igor Tudor secured his second last weekend against strugglers Lecce. Goals from Kenan Yildiz and Teun Koopmeiners proved enough to clinch three points that took them above Bologna in the table and into fourth spot.

While Tudor’s reign has not yet yielded a defeat, this trip to Parma will be a test of his credentials away from home. The new Bianconeri boss has managed wins only on home soil and drew his solitary game away from home to in-form Roma

The competition for a top-four finish continues to have a competitive intensity, with as many as six teams fighting for two spots realistically. Juventus will want to strengthen their grip on fourth place and the only way to do it is by winning their, games, as Tudor will want his players to deliver three points away at Parma.

Team News & Tactics

Parma

Chivu’s list of absentees is rather long, with as many as eight players will miss the Juventus clash. Yordan Osorio, Adrian Benedyczak, Valentin Mihaila, Gabriel Charpentier and Mateusz Kowalski; meanwhile, Matteo Cancellieri is deemed to be unfit for this clash. Pontus Almqvist will miss out through a suspension, as the Parma manager will have to find solutions to name a strong lineup.

He will use a back three of Giovanni Leoni, Alessandro Vogliacco and Lautaro Valenti pencilled in to start there. Enrico Delprato and Emanuele Valeri are the preferred wing-back options for this clash, with Chivu stacking three midfielders between those wide players.

Mandela Keita will sit at the base of the Parma midfield, with Adrian Bernabe and Simon Sohm on either side. Chivu will use Mateo Pellegrino and Ange-Yoan Bonny in his attacking front, as the duo will hope to trouble the Juventus backline.

Probable Lineup (3-5-2) – Suzuki; Leoni, Vogliacco, Valenti; Delprato, Bernabe, Keita, Sohm, Valeri; Pellegrino, Bonny

Juventus

Juventus continues to miss their long-term absentees such as Arkadiusz Milik, Gleison Bremer, Juan Cabal and Federico Gatti. Samuel Mbangula will also miss out, but the big worry for Tudor will be with the fitness of last weekend’s goalscorers Koopmeiners and Yildiz, with the duo suffering from an Achilles problem and an impact injury in training respectively.

Their status to start the game against Parma remains unclear, although Tudor will have solutions available at his disposal should he need to replace the duo. Francisco Conceicao and Nico Gonzalez are the best placed to come in the spots vacated by the duo, although Randal Kolo Muani could also stake a claim at one of those attacking positions.

Beyond that Tudor may not have any more concerns with his squad, as he might not make any changes to the other personnel. Meaning, Timothy Weah and Weston McKennie could once again start in the wing-back roles, with Manuel Locatelli and Khephren Thuram preferred in central midfield. Dusan Vlahovic will continue to lead the line and keep Kolo Muani on the bench.

Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1) – Di Gregorio; Kalulu, Veiga, Kelly; Weah, Locatelli, Thuram, McKennie; Gonzalez, Conceicao; Vlahovic

Key Stats

• Parma have not defeated Juventus since 2015.
• Parma Calcio 1913 have drawn their last 5 matches in Serie A.
• Juventus are undefeated in 35 of their last 38 matches in Serie A.
• Juventus have won their last 4 away matches against Parma Calcio 1913 in all competitions.

Player to Watch

Dusan Vlahovic

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Tudor’s decision to reinstate Vlahovic as his starting striker has paid dividends so far, with the Serbian playing a key role in both the wins for the new manager. The attacker has provided three assists for as many goals scored by Juventus against Genoa and Lecce combined.

However, the bigger target would be for Vlahovic to start scoring himself, as that is why he is there in the squad. There’s no doubt that the Serbian should continue to play in the starting side for the remainder of the season, but his goals will be crucial in Juventus locking down and securing a top-four finish in the remaining games starting with this trip to Parma.

Prediction

Parma 1-2 Juventus

Parma will enter this match as the underdogs, although their recent form under Christian Chivu against the big teams has been good enough for them to dream about taking something from this game. Parma have been resilient in those clashes, and there will be an expectation from the home crowd to deliver another such performance.

However, Juventus are under more pressure to deliver a top-four place in the games remaining this season. Tudor will probably push his team over the line and get the first away win of his Juventus tenure, as well as strengthen their hold on a top-four place. The Bianconeri are expected to break Parma’s resilience and get three valuable points in the bag.