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Juventus projected lineup against Manchester United: Ronaldo looks to lead Juve 1st in Group H

By John Vaccaro

EMPOLI, ITALY - OCTOBER 27: Juventus player Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates 1-1 goal during the Serie A match between Empoli and Juventus at Stadio Carlo Castellani on October 27, 2018 in Empoli, Italy. (Photo by Daniele Badolato - Juventus FC/Juventus FC via Getty Images)
EMPOLI, ITALY - OCTOBER 27: Juventus player Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates 1-1 goal during the Serie A match between Empoli and Juventus at Stadio Carlo Castellani on October 27, 2018 in Empoli, Italy. (Photo by Daniele Badolato - Juventus FC/Juventus FC via Getty Images) /
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Juventus’ players celebrate at the end of the Italian Serie A football match Juventus vs Cagliari at the Juventus Allianz stadium in Turin, on November 3, 2018. (Photo by MARCO BERTORELLO / AFP) (Photo credit should read MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP/Getty Images)
Juventus’ players celebrate at the end of the Italian Serie A football match Juventus vs Cagliari at the Juventus Allianz stadium in Turin, on November 3, 2018. (Photo by MARCO BERTORELLO / AFP) (Photo credit should read MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP/Getty Images) /

Juventus can clinch first place with a win against Manchester United on Wednesday.

To get that win they will need to play much better than they have in recent matches. While they have won their two most recent matches, they have looked lackluster in both performances. They needed an incredible strike from Cristiano Ronaldo to get all 3 points against 18th place Empoli and an own goal to win at home against 14th place Cagliari.

Manchester United has also won their 2 matches since their loss to Juve and they’ve done it against stiffer competition. They won 2-1 at home against 9th place Everton and away against 6th place AFC Bournemouth. These results have seen them jump up 2 spots in the table and they now sit in 7th place, just 4 points away from a spot in next year’s Champions League.

Juventus will be shorthanded against the Red Devils as they attempt to clinch 1st place in the group. Federico Bernardeschi, Douglas Costa, and Moose Kean were all left out of the squad, while Massimiliano Allegri is unsure whether or not he will be able to start Blaise Matuidi. Sami Khedira and Mario Mandzukic are just returning from injury and Giorgio Chiellini and Joao Cancelo have also been dealing with injuries. This is all on top of the fact that Juve was already down to 4 central midfielders because of Emre Can’s thyroid issue. This doesn’t leave Juventus with much tactical flexibility.

In spite of their lack of options it seems that their most likely formation for the match is the         4-3-3. They used it in their dominant win in Manchester and should have just enough of a healthy roster to pull it off.

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