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Juventus are third, 10 factors adrift of leaders Inter Milan, with each groups having 11 video games left to play this season.
Ronaldo will play his sixth Turin derby, which could possibly be his final, amid hypothesis of an exit from Turin on the finish of the season. AFP
Milan: Cristiano Ronaldo returns to Serie A on Saturday with Juventus seeking to reboot their title defence towards struggling metropolis rivals Torino.
Hopes of a tenth consecutive league title have been rocked when Juventus fell 1-0 at residence to lowly Benevento earlier than the worldwide break.
Juventus are third, 10 factors adrift of leaders Inter Milan, with each groups having 11 video games left to play this season.
Ronaldo returns from worldwide responsibility the place his fury at a winner dominated out towards Serbia was adopted by pleasure at scoring towards Luxembourg.
The Portuguese striker will play his sixth Turin derby, which could possibly be his final, amid hypothesis of an exit from Turin on the finish of the season.
The 36-year-old, Serie A’s prime scorer this season, has scored three objectives in his earlier 5 derbies, however simply as soon as at Torino in his first season again in 2018.
Simply six factors separate Juventus in third from seventh-placed Lazio within the race for elite European soccer.
The strain is on coach Andrea Pirlo with defensive duo Leonardo Bonucci and Merih Demiral each testing optimistic for COVID-19
after worldwide responsibility.
Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon won’t be accessible resulting from his one-match blasphemy ban.
Ahead Paulo Dybala has recovered after almost three months out with a knee damage, however there are solutions he could possibly be suspended as punishment for attending a lockdown gathering with Arthur Melo on the residence of American teammate Weston McKennie.
Torino, one level above the relegation zone, have received simply one among their final 29 Serie A matches towards Juventus, and that was six years in the past.
“In opposition to Torino it’s going to actually be a battle, as a result of each of us want factors,” warned Juventus winger Juan Cuadrado.
“The defeat to Benevento was very troublesome to digest,” the Colombian informed Sky Sport.
“In the course of the break, we labored exhausting and put gas in our legs to complete the season in the very best method.”
Inter Milan are again in motion at midtable Bologna after their match earlier than the worldwide break towards Sassuolo was postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak.
Antonio Conte’s males are six factors forward of second-placed AC Milan, who tackle Twelfth-placed Sampdoria.
Inter can depend on the return of captain and goalkeeper Samir Handanovic from COVID-19 whereas Bologna’s Polish goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski has examined optimistic.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s AC Milan want to enhance their residence type to maintain within the operating for a primary ‘Scudetto’ since 2011, having not received any of their final 5 video games in all competitions on the San Siro.
Atalanta, in fourth, equal on factors with Juventus, host Eleventh-placed Udinese seeking to maintain off Napoli, who’re at residence towards basement membership Crotone.
Roma, three factors behind Napoli journey to eighth-placed Sassuolo, after shedding two league video games in a row for the primary time this season.
Sassuolo will likely be with out their Italian internationals, Gian Marco Ferrari, Manuel Locatelli, Domenico Berardi and Francesco Caputo, “as a precaution” regardless of their detrimental assessments, after an outbreak on the Italy staff.
One to look at: Giuseppe Iachini
Giuseppe Iachini returns to the Fiorentina bench simply over 4 months after being changed by former Italy coach Cesare Prandelli, who resigned every week in the past citing the pressure of present soccer.
‘La Viola’ are 14th, seven factors above the relegation zone, earlier than travelling to Genoa, who haven’t misplaced at residence in eight video games.
Key stats:
149 – Lazio striker Ciro Motionless’s Serie A objectives
23 – Ronaldo leads the Serie A scorers’ chart
8 – Inter’s league profitable run
4 – Juventus’s defeats this season
Fixtures (all occasions GMT):
Saturday
AC Milan v Sampdoria (1030), Atalanta v Udinese, Benevento v Parma, Cagliari v Hellas Verona, Genoa v Fiorentina, Lazio v Spezia, Napoli v Crotone, Sassuolo v Roma (all 1300), Torino v Juventus (1600), Bologna v Inter Milan (1845)
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