Juventus host Ajax in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final, with the tie delicately poised at 1-1.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s opening goal in Amsterdam last week was cancelled out by a strike from David Neres early in the second half.
At the weekend, Juve rested a raft of first-team regulars as they missed the chance to secure the Serie A title as they went down 2-1 at SPAL, but Ajax thumped Excelsior 6-2 courtesy of a Klaas-Jan Huntelaar hat-trick.
Will the experience of the Italians or the exuberance of the Dutch triumph at Juventus Stadium, though?
| Game | Juventus vs Ajax |
| Date | Tuesday, April 16 |
| Time | 8:00pm BST / 3:00pm EST |
| Stream (US only) | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial).
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Galavision | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will be shown on BT Sport 3 and streamed on the BT Sport Live app.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| BT Sport 3 | BT Sport Live |
Squads & Team News
| Position | Juventus squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Szczesny, Pinsoglio |
| Defenders | De Sciglio, Rugani, Alex Sandro, Cancelo, Barzagli |
| Midfielders | Pjanic, Matuidi, Can, Bentancur, Bernardeschi, Spinazzola |
| Forwards | Ronaldo, Dybala, Kean |
Key men Cristiano Ronaldo, Miralem Pjanic and Daniele Rugani are recalled after resting out the SPAL fixture last weekend.
Conversely, Moise Kean, who netted against SPAL, is only amongst the substitutes.
Giorgio Chiellini has been ruled out of action due to injury joining Mario Mandzukic, Juan Cuadrado Martin Caceres and Mattia Perin on the sidelines.
Juventus starting XI: Szczęsny, De Sciglio, Pjanic, Ronaldo, Dybala, Alex Sandro, Matuidi, Bonucci, Emre Can, Rugani, Bernardeschi.
| Position | Ajax squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Onana, Lamprou, Varela |
| Defenders | De Ligt, Blind, Sinkgraven, Veltman, Kristensen, Magallan, Mazraoui |
| Midfielders | Schone, Van de Beek, De Jong, De Wit |
| Forwards | Dolberg, Ziyech, Tadic, Neres, Huntelaar, Labyad |
Ajax go into the second leg without highly-rated full-back Nicolas Tagliafico but they have been boosted by the news that Frenkie de Jong is fit to start, while Noussair Mazraoui also returns after being banned for the first leg.
Carel Eiting, Hassana Bande and Vaclav Cerny are missing.
Despite scoring a treble at the weekend, veteran forward Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has to make do with a place on the bench.
Ajax starting XI: Onana, Veltman, De Ligt, Van de Beek, Neres, Tadic, Mazraoui, Blind, Schone, De Jong, Ziyech.
Betting & Match Odds
Juventus are 7/10 favourites to win with Bet365 . Ajax are substantial outsiders at 17/4 while a draw is available at 3/1.
Match Preview
Getty Images
Juventus are aiming to return to the Champions League final after missing out on glory in 2017, when a Cristiano Ronaldo double allowed Real Madrid to secure a 4-1 win.
On Tuesday, Ronaldo will find himself in the black and white stripes of Juve, and for head coach Massimiliano Allegri, that is a major plus.
“In certain moments Cristiano becomes an unstoppable player and you can see it on his face,” he said, doubtless reflecting upon the Portuguese star’s stunning hat-trick in the last 16 as Juve completed an improbable second-leg recovery against Atletico Madrid.
It is the “intensity” that the whole team showed in that comeback that the coach wants to see from his side this time around, having been left disappointed with their ball handling in the first leg.
“We need to be more lucid with our passing and we need to be more accurate in building attacks which we did less well in Amsterdam, and we must show great respect for Ajax. We must also show the same intensity we showed against Atletico,” he warned.
If the Amsterdammers come into the quarter-finals as the rank outsiders, they do it with a reputation as giant killers, having completed one of the most stunning Champions League results of all time in the previous round.
Apparently, no-one gave them a hope ahead of a second-leg trip to Real Madrid as they trailed 2-1 after the home leg. However, they blew their opponents away 4-1 with a stunning display of attacking football .
“If we play well, we can overcome any limit,” boss Erik ten Hag said, eyeing his side’s first Champions League final-four appearance since 1996-97.
“I’m confident because of the way we are playing and training. We are stronger and we are showing it game by game but Juventus are the favourites, especially after the Amsterdam result.”
History leans in the favour of Juventus, who are undefeated in their last 10 meetings with Ajax, while in Ronaldo they have a weapon who has consistently found the mark against the Eredivisie giants, having netted in each of his last five outings against them.
Juve, then, stand as strong favourites to make their third European Cup semi-final in five years.
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