Juventus vs Chelsea

Juventus and Chelsea will lock horns at the Allianz Stadium in a blockbuster UEFA Champions League match-up.

Despite claiming back-to-back 3-2 league victories, Juventus are still miles away from re-joining the Serie A title race, which puts even more pressure on them to fight for their first Champions League title since 1996. A commanding 3-0 win over Malmo away from home in their Group H curtain-raiser sets ‘I Bianconeri’ up nicely for this fixture, as they look to extend their three-game unbeaten Champions League H2H run (W1, D2). Since succumbing to a narrow 1-0 loss in their first Champions League meeting with Chelsea, the Italians have netted 2+ goals in each of their subsequent three duels in the competition. Adding to their confidence, Massimiliano Allegri’s men have won 11 of their last 12 matches in the Champions League group stage, barring a 2-0 defeat to Barcelona in October 2020.

Hoping to disrupt Juventus’ run of three identical 3-0 Champions League triumphs, the reigning holders take the field on the back of a slim 1-0 loss to Manchester City over the weekend. Chelsea will rely on a rock-solid defense to hold their ground, having conceded just four goals in 14 Champions League outings since the start of last season. In addition to keeping ten clean sheets during that 14-game run, the ‘Blues’ boast five shutouts in eight competitive fixtures this season. Thomas Tuchel’s men have only suffered three defeats in their previous 32 Champions League group stage matches (W20, D9) and are undefeated in the last 12 in a row (W8, D4). Tuchel himself boasts an admirable 68% win ratio in the competition’s group phase (GP25 – W17, D5, L3). Only two managers to have guided their teams in 20+ Champions League games enjoy a better win rate than the German.