Sports Mole previews Wednesday’s Champions League clash between Villarreal and Juventus, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Following a spectacular start to their 25th Champions League campaign, Juventus will seek maximum points on Wednesday, when they visit Villarreal at Estadio de la Ceramica.
While Juve stole one point from an eight-goal thriller on the opening matchday, their hosts succumbed to a single goal in London.
Match preview
Taking their place in the Champions League for the first time since 2021-22, when they equalled a club-best run by reaching the semi-finals, Villarreal only squeezed into UEFA’s top tournament with a remarkable end to last season.
The Spanish side, who were not involved in any European competition, secured fifth place in La Liga by posting six straight wins – and they have started in a similar vein this term.
With 16 points on the board from seven league matches – having beaten Athletic Bilbao 1-0 at the weekend – Marcelino‘s men are only led by traditional ‘big two’ Barcelona and Real Madrid.Â
However, their continental campaign got off to a less successful start earlier this month, as an awful own goal by goalkeeper Luiz Junior cost them points in England.
That error was enough to decide a tight contest against Tottenham Hotspur, so Villarreal now need to take something from their first home fixture.
The Yellow Submarine may have lost just one of their last nine home matches in Europe, but most were in the Europa League; in fact, they have only won two of their previous 12 Champions League contests at El Madrigal.
One of those games was a last-16 clash with Juventus three years ago, which they drew 1-1 but ultimately won the tie 4-1 on aggregate.
Juventus finished 20th in last season’s league phase, before losing to PSV Eindhoven in the knockout playoffs, so their main aim over the coming months is to sneak into the Champions League’s top eight.
That would see them straight through to the last 16, but the Italian giants are already under pressure to produce results.Â
Just days after fighting back to beat Inter Milan in a classic Derby d’Italia, Juve kicked off their continental campaign with another saga that featured a truly incredible finale.
Having twice equalised in the second half, the Bianconeri shipped two more goals in the closing stages and seemed bound for defeat against Borussia Dortmund, but they somehow scored twice deep into stoppage time and salvaged a 4-4 home draw.
Substitute Dusan Vlahovic was the catalyst for such a thrilling comeback, but it was Lloyd Kelly who proved Juve’s unlikely saviour with his last-gasp leveller.
Yet, in the cold light of day, they had only continued a subpar run of results in the Champions League, where Juventus have now won just six of their last 20 matches.
Since then, Igor Tudor‘s call for calm has been heeded, as his team have recorded relatively mundane 1-1 draws against Hellas Verona and Atalanta BC in Serie A.
Last time out, they dominated La Dea in Turin but needed a 78th-minute equaliser from Juan Cabal to share the spoils, leaving them fourth in Italy’s top flight.
Villarreal Champions League form:
L
Villarreal form (all competitions):
D L L W W W
Juventus Champions League form:
D
Juventus form (all competitions):
W W W D D D
Team News
Villarreal will be missing injured defenders Willy Kambwala and Juan Foyth, while Pau Navarro is away representing Spain at the Under-20 World Cup.
Furthermore, forwards Gerard Moreno (hamstring) and Ayoze Perez (adductor) remain doubts after sitting out Saturday’s game against Athletic.
While Canadian winger Tajon Buchanan is the Yellow Submarine’s leading scorer with three league goals, Perez netted 19 in La Liga last season and usually partners Georges Mikautadze up front.
Juventus currently have a three-way battle for selection in attack, as Buchanan’s international teammate Jonathan David vies with Vlahovic and Lois Openda.Â
Vlahovic was directly involved in three of Juve’s goals against Dortmund, despite only coming on in the 60th minute; so with the other two failing to fire, Tudor may turn back to his Serbian striker.
Meanwhile, Fabio Miretti is still sidelined by a thigh injury, while key men Bremer (knee) and Khephren Thuram (calf) will be assessed closer to kickoff; Francisco Conceicao is now back in full training and could even start.
Villarreal possible starting lineup:
Junior; Mourino, Marin, Veiga, Cardona; Buchanan, Gueye, Comesana, Solomon; Pepe, Mikautadze
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Di Gregorio; Kalulu, Bremer, Kelly; Mario, Thuram, Locatelli, Cambiaso; Conceicao, Yildiz; David
We say: Villarreal 2-1 Juventus
Still undefeated in all competitions, Tudor’s Juventus often make up for their shortcomings with the capacity to fight back – but their run of fortune may be cut short.
Villarreal have been one of Europe’s top-performing teams in recent months, and they will recover from losing to Spurs with a win on home turf.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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