Juventus head coach Igor Tudor has reportedly decided to make a fundamental change to his starting lineup ahead of Sunday’s contest against Udinese.
The Turin-based giants must win their remaining two fixtures of the Serie A campaign to preserve their precious fourth place and keep the chasing pack in the rearview mirror.
But unfortunately for Tudor, he will have to negotiate Sunday’s fixture against Udinese with a depleted squad.
Khephren Thuram, Nicolo Savona and Pierre Kalulu are all suspended, while Teun Koopmeiners and Federico have yet to fully recover.
So according to several sources in the Italian media, including Sky Sport Italia, the Croatian manager will be forced to drop his tried-and-trusted 3-4-2-1 formation due to the lack of defenders at his disposal and unleash a 4-4-2 system.
Juventus arrive with a depleted squad
Michele Di Gregorio will start in goal as usual, while Lloyd Kelly makes a timely return from injury to link up with Renato Veiga at the heart of the backline. Alberto Costa and Andrea Cambiaso should occupy the full-back slots.
In the middle of the park, Juventus captain Manuel Locatelli will be paired with the versatile Weston McKennie who returns to his original role to fill in for the absent Thuram.
Nicolas Gonzalez and Timothy Weah are the favourites to start on the wings, while Kenan Yildiz returns in attack after serving a two-match ban. The Turkish youngster should link up with Randal Kolo Muani, while Dusan Vlahovic starts on the bench.
Juventus switch to 4-4-2 against Udinese
La Gazzetta dello Sport is reporting the same expected lineup, but leaves a 40% chance for Francisco Conceicao to start upfront instead of Yildiz.
The Portuguese has been a benchwarmer since Tudor’s arrival, but the manager was impressed by the 22-year-old’s cameo against Lazio.
Juventus Probable XI (4-4-2): Di Gregorio; Costa, Veiga, Kelly, Cambiaso; Gonzalez, Locatelli, McKennie, Weah; Kolo Muani, Yildiz (Conceicao).
