Juventus return to Serie A with little room to dwell on Europe, as Luciano Spalletti prepares his side for Sunday’s 18:00 meeting with Atalanta at the Allianz Stadium. The fixture brings Maurizio Sarri and Cristiano Giuntoli back into the club’s orbit, while Juventus are seeking a steadier response after drawing with Milan and then losing away to Sassuolo last weekend.
The European calendar can wait. Juventus will not play their second Europa League match until 15 October, when they travel to Celta Vigo, and the immediate task is to reach the international break with a stronger league result. The turnaround from the NEC game has left Spalletti with limited preparation time, but several players who were absent or rotated in Europe should return.
Guglielmo Vicario is expected to resume his place in goal after Gabrara started against NEC. The replacement goalkeeper helped create Nico’s opening goal, although the Dutch side’s goalkeeper also played a part in the move. Gleison Bremer should likewise return at the heart of the defence, while Kelly is available again after his European suspension. Zhegrova, left out of the UEFA list, can also come back into contention after scoring twice at Reggio Emilia in a defeat that ultimately brought Juventus no points.
Spalletti’s main fitness hope concerns Andrea Cambiaso. The full-back injured his ankle against Parma on the second matchday and underwent another fitness check on Thursday morning. Juventus chose not to take a risk by naming him for the NEC match, but he will be assessed again over the next 48 hours. At Continassa, the aim is to have him available at least for part of the Atalanta game, the final Serie A commitment before the extended international break.
The injury list remains substantial, however. Manuel Locatelli, Khephren Thuram, Kenan Yildiz, Jeremie Boga, Ekhator and Juan Cabal are all still expected to be unavailable as long-term absentees. That leaves Spalletti balancing the need to refresh his team after European rotation with the requirement to find continuity in a league campaign that has already demanded a response.
