Only two points apart in the Serie A standings following the hosts' recent penalty, Juventus and mid-table rivals Fiorentina clash in Turin on Sunday evening.
While Juve have responded to their points deduction and subsequent defeat to Monza with wins in league and cup, their Viola visitors remain wracked by inconsistency and languish below the Bianconeri in the bottom half of the table.
Match preview
© Reuters
After finding themselves cast down among Calcio's also-rans when 15 points suddenly disappeared from their tally last month, Juventus initially struggled to come to terms with such a bitter blow when they had been front-runners for a top-four finish in Serie A.
Their chances of a stirring fightback resulting in qualification for Europe via the league were left in tatters after losing 2-0 at home to Monza, but having since progressed to the Coppa Italia semi-finals at Lazio's expense they were back to winning ways in the top flight on Tuesday.
A Dusan Vlahovic double against Salernitana put the Bianconeri in control at Stadio Arechi, and what turned out to be a 3-0 victory somewhat eased the pressure on the increasingly beleaguered Max Allegri.
Juve's head coach has come under fire for both tactics and team selection this term, but will argue that amid a transitional phase - which has been undermined by unsavoury off-field events - his team remain in the hunt for two trophies: the first leg of their Europa League tie with Nantes awaits next Thursday, and a two-legged Coppa semi-final versus Inter also lies ahead on the calendar.
Before then, though, Juventus seek a return to form on Turin soil, as they have picked up only one point from their last two home games - the last time they went three home fixtures without a league win was as far back as 2015. Indeed, they have also won just one of their last five league meetings with this weekend's opponents, having taken maximum points in nine of the previous 11.
Therefore, Allegri will aim to improve such a state of affairs by building on his own personal record versus the Viola - as Juventus manager, the Tuscany-born boss has six wins from six at home to Fiorentina in Serie A.
© Reuters
On their last 11 trips to Turin's top club, Fiorentina have lost 10 times - with the exception being a shock 3-0 win in December 2020 - so expectations may be suitably low on Sunday.
In addition to precedent, recent form suggests they are unlikely to prevail on this occasion, as Vincenzo Italiano's side possess one of the weakest records in Serie A since returning from the winter break.
In 2023, Fiorentina have won just one of six top-flight fixtures - only Cremonese, Sampdoria and Salernitana have picked up fewer points this year - and they were beaten on home soil again last time out.
Losing 2-1 to fellow mid-table side Bologna left the Viola 13th in the table - five points behind their visitors and two shy of Juve - and they have now kept only one clean sheet during their last 14 league matches.
The Tuscans have, though, plenty left to play for this season, with their own Coppa Italia semi-final coming up and next week's return to the Europa Conference League on the agenda, so lifting the club's first trophy for two decades is surely Italiano's priority.
Team News
© Reuters
While several Juventus players have recently returned to fitness, teenage midfielder Fabio Miretti is now out of action until next month after being stretchered off in the first half of Tuesday's win over Salernitana.
In addition, Leonardo Bonucci, Arkadiusz Milik and Paul Pogba are still sidelined, with Adrien Rabiot also emerging as a fresh doubt having trained alone during the week.
Going head-to-head with Angel Di Maria for selection, former Fiorentina winger Federico Chiesa will be extra keen for inclusion in Max Allegri's XI, as will Dusan Vlahovic.
Since leaving Florence, the latter has played 186 minutes without scoring or providing an assist against his old club, for whom he found the net 49 times in 108 appearances. Nevertheless, only Napoli's Victor Osimhen boasts a better goals-per-game rate than the Serbian in Serie A this season (0.67).
The visitors, meanwhile, are hampered by the effects of indiscipline, as both Igor and ex-Juve midfielder Rolando Mandragora must serve suspensions on Sunday; Lucas Martinez Quarta deputises for the former in defence.
Riccardo Sottil and Antonin Barak are sidelined by injury, while World Cup star Sofyan Amrabat should feature in Fiorentina's midfield, but wearing a protective mask to protect his broken nose.
Up front, Luka Jovic is favourite to start rather than Arthur Cabral, with Christian Kouame one of two men supporting from out wide - the Ivorian scored in a 1-1 draw between these teams in September's reverse fixture.
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Szczesny; Danilo, Bremer, Sandro; De Sciglio, Fagioli, Locatelli, Rabiot, Kostic; Chiesa, Vlahovic
Fiorentina possible starting lineup:
Terracciano; Dodo, Milenkovic, Martinez Quarta, Biraghi; Duncan, Amrabat, Bonaventura; Gonzalez, Jovic, Kouame
We say: Juventus 2-1 Fiorentina
The only thing consistent about Fiorentina is their inconsistency, so it is unclear which shade of Viola will turn up in Turin. That notwithstanding, Juventus are growing closer to full strength in terms of personnel and have begun coming to terms with their points penalty - it is the Old Lady who will come out on top, then.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
