Their most recent Serie A game saw the Old Lady suffer a late 3-2 defeat at Sassuolo after levelling the game twice. Should Juve backers be worried?
| 2026/27 Juventus outright betting markets | Odds |
| Serie A winner | 10.00 |
| Serie A top 4 finish | 1.57 |
Odds are courtesy of 10bet and are subject to change.
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Injuries and a lack of firepower concern Juve backers
After the opening four games of the 2026/27 Serie A season, Juventus have 7 points from 4 matches. That’s not the profile of a side worth trusting in any of Serie A’s outright markets, especially at short prices.
Luciano Spalletti’s men started the season in encouraging fashion. They landed back-to-back home wins over Frosinone and Parma. However, they were promptly brought back down to earth with their draw at AC Milan, followed by their inexplicable 3-2 late defeat at Sassuolo.
Six goals and four conceded in four matches looks like a solid enough base to build from. Yet, it is still lighter than it should be after 360+ minutes of Serie A action.
The Sassuolo horror show exposed some defensive frailties and severe game management issues. Both are areas that could prove costly for a side hoping to challenge for the Scudetto.
In his post-match press conference, Spalletti highlighted his side’s lack of balance in the closing stages at Sassuolo. With 8 players committed forward in search of a winner, they left too much space in behind for the hosts to transition into.
Spalletti also called out his backline for defending too high and failing to be aggressive enough to thwart Sassuolo’s opening goal.
Taken together, these issues suggest there may be deeper problems within Juventus’ defensive structure.
Spalletti is also having to deal with a growing list of absentees. This makes it harder for him to find the right balance between creating more in the final third and keeping opponents pinned back.
They were without Manuel Locatelli, Jeremie Boga, Kenan Yildiz, Weston McKennie, Andrea Cambiaso, Khéphren Thuram, Jeff Ekhator and Juan Cabal for the trip to Sassuolo.
Locatelli is not expected back until early January 2027, Thuram until mid-February 2027 and Yıldız until mid-November. Meanwhile, Cambiaso and McKennie are back in training but weren’t deemed ready for Serie A action last weekend.
Did You Know? Juventus sit only 8th in the table for big chances created, with just 11 from four matches. That’s almost half the number created by Scudetto holders and 2026/27 Scudetto favourites Inter (21). Even Roma (20) are carving out more goalscoring opportunities.
Spalletti has already spoken out about Juve’s limited squad depth, singling out Yildiz and McKennie as difficult players to replace.
It’s proof that the Old Lady still have precious little margin for error when injuries to key players start to pile up. To be genuine Scudetto contenders this term, Spalletti needs a slice of good fortune to keep his match-winners off the treatment table.
The atmosphere outside the stadium is bubbling up too. Social media calls for the out-of-work Antonio Conte to replace Spalletti surfaced after the naive defeat to Sassuolo.
This is a clear reminder that patience is already thin around a club that last won a Scudetto 6 years ago.
The data makes it hard to back Juve in the outrights
The defeat to Sassuolo highlighted many of Juventus’ biggest issues so far in the 2026/27 campaign. They had 57% possession and posted 16 shots to Sassuolo’s 8.
They registered 1.51 xG to Sassuolo’s 0.88, yet somehow conspired to lose the match 3-2.
Across their opening 4 Serie A matches this term, Juve have registered 66 goal attempts, 24 of which found the target. Although those numbers sound impressive, they are by no means the best in the league.
Do you like backing goals markets on Juve games? Consider pivoting to the Under 2.5 Goals line for the coming weeks. The Old Lady have the best defensive record in Serie A, with just 1.8 expected goals against (xGA). That’s almost an entire goal better off than Roma (2.7 xGA), who sit second in Serie A’s xGA table. Juve are only 7th for xG too, posting just 6.5 xG from four games.
Their lack of shots on target is another concern. They average 6 shots on target per 90, which is two fewer per game than title favourites Inter.
Their shot zones also make for interesting viewing. Almost half (46%) of Juve’s goal attempts so far this term have been from outside of the opponents’ penalty area.
This suggests they aren’t penetrating enough, with low defensive blocks forcing them to shoot from range. By comparison, almost two-thirds (63%) of Inter’s goal attempts are within the 18-yard box.
Juve’s attacking options are yet to find form this term. Randal Kolo Muani is yet to score in 360 minutes, despite having 5 goal attempts. Meanwhile, new loan signing Nick Woltemade is yet to open his account for the Old Lady.
Spalletti has spoken of his desire to get Kolo Muani involved more in the build-up, especially when the midfield is too congested to play through.
Zhegrova proving to be Juve’s X Factor
Kosovan wide forward Edon Zhegrova has been an unlikely hero for Juve so far this term. He came off the bench and appeared to have rescued a point for Juve with a brace against Sassuolo.
This suggests there is still enough individual quality in the Juve squad to turn matches around. However, one impressive cameo does not address Juventus’ inconsistent attacking output across the opening four rounds.
There’s always a chance that Spalletti’s side will get it together when their key players return from injury. Their shot volume suggests their start to 2026/27 is by no means beyond repair.
However, as it stands, they sit in 8th place with a depleted squad, unreliable strikers and still digesting their late collapse at Sassuolo. All of this makes it hard to back them with any degree of confidence ahead of Sunday’s visit to Atalanta.
Looking at their schedule, 2 of their next 3 Serie A opponents currently sit above them in the table. This includes an unbeaten Lazio and a clinical Cagliari. Positive results in these fixtures could see Juventus’ outright prices more appealing.
They also have the small matter of a Europa League league-phase schedule to cram in around their Serie A campaign.
With an injury-hit squad, Thursday night games are the last thing you need if you’re still backing the Old Lady for Scudetto success.