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#3 Chelsea’s bench strength
Chelsea and Juventus are two of the most decorated teams in the world. They know how to attack, how to defend, and how to catch the opposition off-guard. Most of the time, they do so with the help of their bench. Unfortunately for Wednesday’s hosts, Chelsea are considerably ahead of them in this particular area.
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Thomas Tuchel has the luxury of fielding mildly experimental sides to exploit Juventus’ unexpected defensive vulnerabilities. If they do not work, he can always fall back on tactics that work. Chelsea’s deep bench, which comprises of the likes of Hakim Ziyech and Ben Chilwell, allows him to be adventurous, something Allegri cannot afford this season.
#2 Absence of Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata
Cristiano Ronaldo leaving in the summer left a gaping hole in Juventus’ attack. Following the superstar’s departure, Juventus were beaten by Napoli and Empoli consecutively before settling for a draw with Milan in Serie A. Their poor attacking performance improved slightly in the next two games, primarily due to Paulo Dybala.
The Argentine suffered a thigh injury following Juventus’ win over Sampdoria last weekend and has been ruled out of the clash against Chelsea.
Former Chelsea forward Morata has also been ruled out of the game after he tore his muscle fiber. Neither is expected to return before the international break in October. Interestingly, both Morata and Dybala were on the scoresheet in Juventus’ Champions League opener against Malmo a couple of weeks ago.
#1 Juventus’ poor form in the Serie A
In the 2020-21 Serie A campaign, Inter Milan capitalized on Juventus’ vulnerabilities and beat the Old Lady to the league title. The Nerazzurri broke Juve's nine-year streak, marking a new era in Italian football. The Bianconeri sacked manager Andrea Pirlo following the debacle, bringing Massimiliano Allegri back to Turin.
Unfortunately, Allegri’s return has not done Juventus any favors. The Italian giants only picked up a couple of points from their opening four fixtures, marking their worst ever start to a Serie A campaign this century.
Juventus did bounce back with consecutive wins over Spezia and Sampdoria, but they conceded four goals in those two fixtures alone. Their defensive stability has gone for a toss this season, which could hurt them badly against Chelsea.
Playing in the Champions League is always special for any team, but this out-of-shape Juventus probably do not have enough to beat the Blues.
