Barcelona kick off their pre-season tour of the USA this weekend as they lock horns with Massimiliano Allegri's Juventus side in a friendly match at the Levi's Stadium in California on Saturday.
Barcelona vs Juventus Preview
Juventus finished in seventh place in the Serie A standings last season and were severely hampered by a points deduction in the middle of their league campaign. The Bianconeri edged Udinese to a narrow 1-0 margin in their previous game and will look to achieve a similar result this weekend.
Barcelona, on the other hand, finished at the top of the La Liga standings last season and have been impressive under Xavi so far. The Catalan outfit eased past Vissel Kobe by a 2-0 margin in a friendly match last month and will be confident ahead of this fixture.
Barcelona vs Juventus Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- Barcelona have an impressive record against Juventus and have won five out of the 10 matches played between the two teams, as opposed to Juventus' two victories.
- The previous meeting between the two teams took place in a friendly match in June last year and ended in a hard-fought 2-2 draw.
- Barcelona were defensively brilliant in La Liga last season and conceded only 20 goals in their 38 league games.
- Juventus conceded only 33 goals in their 38 matches in the Serie A last season - only Napoli and Lazio managed better defensive records in the competition.
- After their 4-2 victory against local rivals Espanyol that won them the La Liga title, Barcelona lost three of their four matches in the competition.
- Robert Lewandowski was the most prolific goalscorer in La Liga last season and scored 23 goals in the Blaugrana's triumphant league campaign.
Barcelona vs Juventus Prediction
Barcelona have shown marked improvement under Xavi so far and managed to end their league title drought last season. The Catalans have signed Ilkay Gundogan and will look to their star-studded midfield for inspiration in the coming weeks.
Juventus endured a difficult season off the field and will look to begin their pre-season on a positive note. Barcelona are the better team on paper and hold a slight upper hand going into this game.
Prediction: Barcelona 2-1 Juventus
Barcelona vs Juventus Betting Tips
Tip 1: Result - Barcelona
Tip 2: Game to have over 2.5 goals - Yes
Tip 3: Barcelona to score first - Yes
Tip 4: Ansu Fati to score - Yes