Juventus will be looking to extend their lead at the top of the table when they take on Parma at the Juventus Stadium on Sunday afternoon in Serie A.
It has been a season of complete contrast between these two sides, with Parma positioned perilously in the relegation zone, in comparison with the Old Lady who are situated at the top of Serie A.
The Crociati come into the game after an impressive home victory against Inter and they will be hoping that this will kick-start their sluggish season which has consisted of eight defeats from ten games.
Though they may hope for a bit of luck as they don green strips as part of a charity initiative in order to raise money for those affected by flooding in Northern Italy.
Last season, Juventus overcame Parma on both occasions but neither games were mere formalities. The first fixture was a particulary scrappy affair with the game being decided by a Paul Pogba goal in the second half.
In the corresponding fixture, Juventus ended Parma’s 17 match unbeaten streak in a 2-1 victory, with Carlos Tevez scoring both against the 10 men of Parma.
This season, Juventus have struggled to imitate the superiority they showed last season, when they dominated Serie A ultimately finishing 17 points ahead of runners up Roma.
However, despite lacking a certain imperiousness, Juventus have still managed an impressive eight victories in ten games and will be looking to maintain their position at the top of Serie A this weekend with another victory.
If Parma are to obtain a result on sunday, they will be looking for another effective performance from their enigmatic striker Antonio Cassano who will hoping to add to his tally of five goals.
Also former Juventus player Paolo De Ceglie will be hoping to repeat his scoring heroics of last week when the left back inspired a Parma 2-0 victory, scoring both goals.
Juventus may be missing two of their key midfielders for the game on Sunday after Claudio Marchisio and Kwadwo Asamoah both picked up injuries in their 3-2 victory over Olympiacos on Wednesday, but Allegri’s biggest decision may be who to partner up front with Tevez. Whether it be Alvaro Morata or an improving Fernando Llorente.
Parma coach Roberto Donadoni will once again have to take into consideration their extensive injury list, one that now includes striker Massimo Coda.
Expected Starting XIs
Juventus: Buffon, Ogbonna ,Chiellini, Bonnuci, Lichtsteiner, Pirlo. Vidal, Pogba, Pereryra, Llorente, Tevez
Parma: Mirante, Santacroce, Costa, Felipe, Rispoli, Acquah, Lodi, Mauri, Gobbi, Cassano, Belfodil
