CL Preview: Real Madrid - Juventus

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The Juventus and Real Madrid players observe a minute silence prior to kick-off in honour of two Bianconeri fans who died in a road crash on their way to watch the game.

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How quickly time flies. When these two sides met in the reverse clash in Turin a mere two weeks ago, Real Madrid were in outstanding form while Juventus were knee-deep in crisis. Now, four games later, the two teams have swapped fortunes.

Trouble Holding On

The Spanish behemoths have hit a minor slump ever since the 2-1 loss at Juventus on Matchday Three. They have now won just once in their last three games and only two from their last six in all competitions.

More disconcertingly, Bernd Schuster’s men have been displaying this frustrating habit of throwing leads away – and sometimes certain victory – due to their lack of concentration and their inability to kill off a game, despite constantly dominating their opponents in every department.

This potentially costly Achilles' heel is a direct result of the team’s ineffectiveness in front of goal. But they are by no means struggling to find the back of the net. They have scored in every single game so far this season although their efficiency rate – something that they prided themselves in last term – has dropped dramatically in recent outings.

In all fairness, Los Merengues have scored more goals than their form guide will actually show. It’s just that most of them have been disallowed for offside. Whether or not they were correctly or incorrectly flagged by the officials is still a controversial and hotly debated topic. But you just feel that if a team score that many offside goals in successive matches, perhaps it’s time to start re-assessing their approach to the game.

Madrid also seem to have this knack of hitting poor form just before taking on Italian opposition. Last season, they were enduring their worst streak of the entire campaign when they faced AS Roma in the first knock-out round of this competition. The men in white went on to lose 4-2 on aggregate after going down in both legs in a defeat that ended their 14-game winning streak against Italian rivals at home. But at least they still have a near unblemished record against Juventus.

Anything You Can Do…

Madrid’s failure to triumph at Juve a fortnight ago has extended their winless run in Turin to 46 years. But then the Bianconeri  do not have all that proud a record at the Bernabéu, either.

They have lost their last four visits to the Spanish capital in Champions League/European Cup competition and the last time they won there was – yes, you guessed it – 46 years ago when they beat the Merengues 1-0 in the second leg of the quarter finals in the 1961/62 edition.

Of course, Madrid actually won the first leg by the same scoreline in Turin – hence the identical home record – and ever since then, neither have been able to break the impenetrable curse of winning at their rivals’ own backyard.

But the Old Lady will fancy their chances of pulling off something special this time around. Claudio Ranieri’s troops have now strung together four wins in succession, thanks largely to the morale-boosting 2-1 triumph over Madrid which has proven to be the catalyst for their revival.

There are still doubts, however, as to whether or not Juventus can continue their upward momentum. Ranieri has yet to truly win over the pundits with his team selection and tactics, while the players collectively have looked far from convincing even in victory.

With the exception of the 4-0 thumping of Artmedia Petržalka in the Champions League qualifiers in pre-season, Juve have not scored more than two goals per game since the new campaign officially kicked-off. While many a critic may label their style of play as unadventurous, it is, however, a case study for Madrid on how not to throw away a lead.

FORM GUIDE

Real Madrid

Nov 02 UD Almería 1-1 Real Madrid (LA LIGA)

Oct 30 Real Unión 3-2 Real Madrid (COPA DEL REY)

Oct 26 Real Madrid 3-2 Athletic Bilbao (LA LIGA)

Oct 21 Juventus 2-1 Real Madrid (CHAMPIONS LEAGUE)

Oct 18 Atlético Madrid 1-2 Real Madrid (LA LIGA)

Juventus

Nov 01 Juventus 2-0 AS Roma (SERIE A)

Oct 29 Bologna 0-1 Juventus (SERIE A)

Oct 25 Juventus 1-0 Torino (SERIE A)

Oct 21 Juventus 2-1 Real Madrid (CHAMPIONS LEAGUE)

Oct 18 Napoli 2-1 Juventus (SERIE A)

TEAM NEWS

Real Madrid

Schuster does not have any major injury concerns but he does have several key players still doubtful for selection. Centre-back Pepe sustained a bruised left thigh against Almería last Sunday, and although he is recovering smoothly, it is still uncertain if he will reach full fitness in time. Midfielder Mahamadou Diarrà, meanwhile, picked up a knock in his knee in the same game and he, too, will have to run a late fitness test.

Ruud van Nistelrooy, however, has resumed normal training after shaking off a knee injury but likewise, Schuster still has to decide if he is ready to play a significant role in the game. Miguel Torres is also back after recovering from a muscle tear but Rubén de la Red, who fainted and collapsed last week against Real Unión in the Copa del Rey, is still recuperating at home.

Probable Starting XI (4-3-3): Casillas – Sergio Ramos, Cannavaro, Pepe/Heinze, Marcelo – Sneijder, Gago/Diarrà, Guti – Robben, Van Nistelrooy, Raúl (c)

Juventus

Defenders Dario Knežević and Zdeněk Grygera have added themselves to Juventus’ long casualty list after picking up injuries over the past week. Knežević had to undergo surgery to remove damaged cartiliage in his knee while Grygera suffered a thigh injury at the weekend against Roma.

David Trézéguet, Gianluigi Buffon, Cristiano Zanetti, Jorge Andrade and Christian Poulsen are just a few others who are sidelined with various ailments while midfielder Claudio Marchisio has failed to shrug off the ankle sprain he sustained in the reverse clash two weeks ago. But the good news for Ranieri is that the likes of Mauro Camoranesi, Tiago and Vicenzo Iaquinta are all back to full fitness.   

Probable Starting XI (4-4-2): Manninger – Mellberg, Legrottaglie, Chiellini, Molinaro – Camoranesi, Sissoko, Tiago, Nedvěd – Amauri, Del Piero (c)

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Real Madrid

Los Merengues have sorely missed Ruud van Nistelrooy and his ruthless efficiency in front of goal, and his return should give the team a much-needed attacking thrust. Wesley Sneijder is slowly rediscovering his form ever since his comeback from pre-season injury, and his set-piece bombardments will be crucial for Madrid. If he and his compatriot Van Gol can dial into each other’s frequencies, then they should have no problems breaching even the most tenacious of Juve defences.   

Juventus

Amauri and Alessandro Del Piero have been responsible for lifting Juventus out of their gloom, producing the goods – and the goals – when they were needed most. But it was Giorgio Chiellini who was the “rock” star in Turin two weeks ago, single-handedly keeping out everything Madrid could throw at the back-line, and he will have to be at his sharpest again to stop what should be the even more attack-minded Los Blancos at the Bernabéu.

PREDICTION

Schuster’s orders to his players will be simple: do not concede the early goal. Or any goal for that matter. But considering how many times they have blown their lead when they do score first themselves, it might not be such a good idea for them to net the opener either.

One way or the other, as history has shown, there will be nothing to choose between these two sides and it will be a closely fought battle with a tight margin expected at the end of the 90 minutes The safest bet, though, would be to go with history and a Madrid win.

Real Madrid 2-1 Juventus

KS Leong