Juventus vs Zenit: Former Italian top-flight to beat the Russian club for the second time

Juventus have lost two straight league games in Italy. But as early as Tuesday, the Turin side can secure their place in the Champions League play-offs by beating Zenit on home soil. Do the Russian champions stand any chance of beating Juve? This is not Spartak and Dynamo, so it is unlikely.

What’s happening to Juve at the moment is a real challenge. Max Allegri’s team won 6 straight victories from late September to late October, and it seemed that the renaissance of the hegemonic club was complete and unequivocal. But the reality was harsh, and Juventus had to face it next. After a 1-1 home save in the Italian Derby with Inter, the Bianconeri had a terrible home game against Sassuolo, losing 1-2 in the dying seconds, before a disappointing trip to Verona. The home side has beaten Roma, Lazio, and now Juve this season. The Turin side conceded two goals in the 13th minute but managed to score only once before the end of the match, 1-2. Juventus have already slipped down to 9th place in the Serie A table.

Perhaps the switch to the Champions League will do the Bianconeri some good. It’s a different tournament where the team is doing well so far. After three rounds, Juventus are 100% at the top of the group, and a win against Zenit could guarantee access to the play-offs and make a serious bid for the final top spot in the group.

Sergei Semak’s team, which gave up slightly in early to mid-October, confirmed its status as the flagship of Russian football last week. Zenit took turns smashing Spartak and Dinamo 7-1 and 4-1, respectively. Such total domination by the St Petersburg club in the national championship had never been seen before. There is little doubt that Zenit won their fourth consecutive league title.

In short, the foundation of Zenit’s success is stability and a well-functioning organizational structure. The club from St. Petersburg has long since made no sudden moves. Whatever happens, decisions are made smoothly and responsibly and do not contradict the overall development strategy. So far, there is no reason to assume that anyone will come close to Zenit in this regard in the coming years. Dynamo and Lokomotiv have the best chance, having invited competent specialists from abroad, Buvac and Rangnick, respectively. But both clubs are still at the beginning of their journey. If not for Sergei Galitsky’s morbid attachment to mythical attacking football, Krasnodar could probably do the same.

Juventus are a landmark club in the history of Zenit. It was against the Turin side that Juventus debuted in the 2008/09 Champions League group stage. The first game was a disaster: Zenit lost 0-1 in Turin. Alessandro Del Piero netted the only goal of the game from a free-kick.

The return leg in St Petersburg ended in a 0-0 draw. However, it was the fifth round and not a particularly important match for the Italians.

After their defeat at the hands of Verona, Juventus shut down their base until the next round’s match against Fiorentina. According to Allegri, this should bring the team together. Despite recent poor results, there is a real sense that he knows what he is doing. It’s unlikely that Zenit have any chance of even a draw in the upcoming game. The Turin side has tournament motivation and the need to regain their confidence - motivation extra.

Unfortunately, the level of Russian club football, degraded due to the meaningless limit on foreign players, is very low right now. Even a club that is unquestionably in the lead domestically is not yet ready to compete with the representatives of the top leagues. The third place in the group is the realistic limit for Zenit at the moment. If they manage to keep it without losing away to Malmo in the 5th round, the European Cup autumn should be considered a success for Zenit. It might be better in the next round.

The prediction is a win for Juventus.

• W1 and Total Under 4.5 for 1.80;
• Asian handicap 1 (-0.75) for 1.74;
• Zenit to score - no for 2.30.