Juventus probable lineup vs Atalanta: Motta to drop Yildiz? | OneFootball

This evening, Juventus and Atalanta will cross paths in the most anticipated fixture of Serie A Matchday 28.

The Bianconeri will be desperate to earn their sixth win on the trot as it would allow them to overtake Gian Piero Gasperini’s men in the standings, keeping Lazio in the rear-view mirror, and most importantly, keep their Scudetto hopes alive.

So how will the Bianconeri line up for this particularly crucial clash?

In his pre-match conference, Thiago Motta confirmed the absence of six players. This includes long-term absentees Gleison Bremer, Juan Cabal and Arek Milik, in addition to Douglas Luiz, Nicolo Savona and Jonas Rouhi who should return in the coming weeks.

But despite the returns of Pierre Kalulu and Renato Veiga, Sky Sport Italia expects the backline to remain intact, with Timothy Weah, Federico Gatti, Pierre Kalulu and Andrea Cambiaso starting in front of Michele Di Gregorio who will be in goal once more.

In the middle of the park, Motta will almost certainly confirm the duo of Manuel Locatelli and Khephren Thuram, especially following the latter’s recent exploits.

(Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)

The source also envisions the return of Teun Koopmeiners as an attacking midfielder, thus pushing Weston McKennie to the right wing, and consequently dropping Kenan Yildiz out of the starting lineup. This suggests that the manager is adopting a more cautious approach against the dangerous La Dea.

Nicolas Gonzalez is expected to keep his spot on the left wing, and the same goes for Randal Kolo Muani who will be leading the attack once more.

La Gazzetta dello Sport is also expecting the same lineup to take the field, but leaves a 40% chance for Yildiz and Kalulu to replace Koopmeiners and Gatti respectively.

Juventus Probable XI (4-2-3-1): Di Gregorio; Weah, Gatti (Kalulu), Kelly, Cambiaso; Locatelli, Thuram; McKennie, Koopmeiners (Yildiz), Gonzalez; Kolo Muani.