Fallen giants Juventus start the post-Thiago Motta era on Saturday evening, when they welcome Genoa to Turin.
The Bianconeri's board finally acted to remove their coach after successive Serie A humblings, and trusted hand Igor Tudor will try to revive an ailing top-four challenge.
Match preview
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After suffering an historic home defeat - losing 4-0 to Atalanta BC - Juventus then sunk further into crisis just before the international break, with a 3-0 reverse against Fiorentina at Stadio Franchi.
In isolation, either result would be unacceptable for any Bianconeri boss, but those twin setbacks came hot on the heels of embarrassing exits from the Champions League and Coppa Italia - to PSV Eindhoven and Empoli.
With their top-four prospects fast diminishing, Juve's board decided to relieve Thiago Motta of his duties, amid speculation of unrest in the camp.
Remarkably, Motta was sacked despite losing just three of 29 Serie A matches - only one before this month - as a tally of 13 league draws proved fatal to hopes of fighting for the title.
Igor Tudor - who won two Scudetti as a player with Juventus - was subsequently appointed interim head coach, having previously managed Hellas Verona and Lazio in Italy's top flight.
Also an assistant at the Allianz Stadium during Andrea Pirlo's ill-fated reign, Tudor has penned a deal until the end of this season, with an option to extend it by a further 12 months.
He inherits a squad that have recorded the club's fewest league wins at this stage of any campaign since 2011, leaving them sitting fifth in the standings.
Another failure this week would be unthinkable, as Juve have not lost a Serie A home game to Genoa for 34 years; since then, they have posted 15 wins and five draws.
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Not surprisingly, Genoa have recorded their most top-tier defeats to Juventus down the years - a total of 68 is eight more than against any other club.
They were beaten 3-0 in September's reverse fixture at Stadio Ferraris, while enduring a tough start to the season, but since ex-Juve midfielder Patrick Vieira took charge a few weeks later they have pulled clear of danger.
Firming up a safe spot in mid-table, Genoa won their final game before the international break, as Juventus-owned Fabio Miretti struck twice to secure a 2-1 success against Lecce.
As a result, the Grifone occupy 12th place in the Serie A standings, with no fears of a relegation fight to haunt them - nor with any prospect of qualifying for Europe.
They may have lost just one of their last six games, as Vieira's quiet revolution continues, but if they are to sneak into the final top 10 their away record must surely improve.
The Rossoblu have yet to win outside of Liguria in 2025, with their last away victory dating back to December 28, at Empoli's Stadio Carlo Castellani.
Team News
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Igor Tudor has confirmed Manuel Locatelli as his Juventus captain, while the Croatian coach has spoken positively about Dusan Vlahovic, who had been out of favour at the tail-end of Thiago Motta's tenure.
The latter would therefore be paired with Randal Kolo Muani if Tudor opts for a 3-5-2 formation, though a 3-4-2-1 setup might be more likely. After scoring five goals in his first three matches for the club, Kolo Muani has not found the net in eight subsequent appearances totalling 622 minutes, so he could make way.
Juve are still without a trio of long-term absentees - Bremer, Juan Cabal and Arkadiusz Milik - while Andrea Cambiaso and Douglas Luiz have both been ruled out following a prolonged spell of fitness issues.
Meanwhile, Fabio Miretti will return to familiar turf, having impressed for Genoa since leaving Turin on loan: he has scored three goals and provided three assists in 23 league appearances, already surpassing his respective tallies in 58 games for Juve.
The Grifone's injury list features Mattia Bani, Junior Messias, Honest Ahanor, Mario Balotelli and Maxwel Cornet, while left-back Aaron Martin must serve a suspension.
In the latter's absence, either Johan Vasquez or Alan Matturro could fill in on that flank - both are central defenders who have deputised on the left side of a back four.
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Di Gregorio; Kalulu, Gatti, Kelly; Weah, Locatelli, Thuram, McKennie; Koopmeiners, Yildiz; Vlahovic
Genoa possible starting lineup:
Leali; Sabelli, De Winter, Vasquez, Matturro; Frendrup, Masini; Zanoli, Malinovskyi, Miretti; Pinamonti
We say: Juventus 2-1 Genoa
A change of coach - and formation - should refresh Juventus at this crucial stage of the season, with their Champions League dreams on the line between now and May.
While Genoa are tough to beat on home soil, they tend to struggle more on the road and might end up empty-handed.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Jonathan O'Shea
