Europa League: Sporting Believe That They Can Turn it Around Against Juve

Sporting Lisbon vs Juventus

Juventus hold the lead over Sporting, but this Europa League quarter-finals tie is far from over.

Federico Gatti was the hero in the first leg in Turin when he scored the only goal of the contest, but make no mistake, Sporting lost because they didn’t convert on their opportunities.

And now Sporting have a chance to make things right when Juventus visit the Jose Alvalade Stadium on Thursday evening.

The hosts are coming off a 1-1 draw with Arouca in the Primeira Liga yesterday, while Juventus suffered their second straight Serie A loss when they were defeated 1-0 by Sassuolo.

A win here by either side would not only get them through the next round, but it’ll also give them a huge confidence boost.

Talking Points

Vlahovic can end his scoring slump here

Dusan Vlahovic hasn’t scored in a while again, and he must break out of his rut if Juventus are going to beat Sporting and possibly go farther in the Europa League.

When he forced Sebastian Coates to block him, Vlahovic came close to breaking his dry spell, but that was his lone opportunity in the first leg. And then he couldn’t get it going against Sassuolo on Monday because his teammates didn’t set him up well.

Vlahovic is still the team’s top scorer with 11 goals and four assists, so he can only improve from here on out. After all, he’s just 23 years old.

Max Allegri rested several key players against Sassuolo, so he should bring some of them back into the starting lineup on Thursday.

Federico Chiesa, Juan Cuadrado, and Angel Di Maria all came off the bench against the Neroverdi. Di Maria is the most dangerous of these three in the final third since he has already notched eight goals and seven assists this season.

Also, Manuel Locatelli didn’t play on Monday, and Allegri might have to consider bringing him back in to replace Nicolo Fagioli, following the youngster’s costly mistake against Sassuolo.

Trincao is Sporting’s x-factor

Francisco Trincao moved back to Portugal in the summer on a loan with a buy option included, and Sporting have now activated his buy clause to make his transfer from Barcelona permanent.

The 23-year-old winger is the team’s second-leading scorer with 11 goals, but none of those have come here in the Europa League thus far.

He is certainly capable of producing Europa League 2023 highlights with his ability to score goals in bunches, which he showed in their 4-3 win over Casa Pia last week when he recorded his first-ever hat-trick.

Because he is playing alongside the likes of Marcus Edwards, Nuno Santos, and the talismanic Pedro Goncalves, Trincao will get his chances. Look for him to be aggressive against Juventus, who will likely be content with preserving their lead rather than adding to it.

History

Ruben Amorim’s team hasn’t beaten any Italian side since September 2011, when they defeated Lazio 2-1 in the Europa League group stage. And prior to Thursday, the Lisbon-based outfit was winless in three matches against Juventus in Europe (D1, L2).

Sporting have also been eliminated from each of their last five major European knockout ties when they lose the first leg. The last time that they progressed from such a position was back in 2009-10 against Everton in the Europa League Round of 32.

And the hosts have failed to win any of their last four home matches in Europe (D2, L2).

Juventus have won each of their last four away matches in Europe without conceding a goal, and they could stretch such a streak to five for the first time since the 2013 Champions League.

However, the Old Lady has lost their last two away games against Portuguese sides, both in the Champions League (vs. Porto in 2020-21 and Benfica earlier this campaign).

Betting Tip

The SBOTOP Europa League 2023 odds predict another tight contest between these two sides. In stark contrast to the first leg preview, this time, Sporting are priced better at 2.27, while Juventus are not far behind at 2.89, and a draw is at 3.20 in the 1X2 market.

Even if they are trailing in the quarter-finals, Sporting have looked like the better team against Juventus, so this tie can go either way. Because determining the winner of this game is a tough call, instead, we’ll be looking at the possible goal total of this game. And we’re looking at Under 2.50 at 2.28, while Total Goal 0-1 at 2.55 is another viable betting option.

 

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