Juventus Manager Massimiliano Allegri has confirmed the lineup, including goalkeeper Mattia Perin, Daniele Rugani and Federico Chiesa, for the upcoming roundof16 match in Coppa Italia. The news was revealed in a pre-match press conference. Locatelli is also expected on the pitch, since he’s suspended for an upcoming league match with Roma.
Allegri made a surprising comment about young player Yildiz, who has been praised for his performance in recent matches. Allegri, however, seemed cautious in his praise. He was quoted as saying, “Tomorrow Yildiz will not play. When a young player plays he is always exalted. He needs to stay calm, two games do not say if you are a great player or will have a great career. At the end of the career, you count, the rest is chatter that at this moment is instrumentalized on a good player who has only played two games at Juve.”
Pundits have speculated that Allegri tends to downplay individual performances, and his past comments alluding to Yildiz as Chiesa’s alter ego could mean Chiesa is the preferred starter, and no formation changes are expected.
Juventus under Allegri’s management has a good record in Coppa Italia. The club has won the cup four out of seven times, reached the final once and never slipped in the round of 16 – unlike other big clubs, including Inter in the current season. Looking back at Allegri’s formation choices for the first matches, the team’s lineup often undergoes significant changes;
In 2014-15 Juventus won 6-1 against Verona, with eight players different from the previous match. Young Federico Mattiello got brief playtime in the final minutes.
The team defeated Torino 4-0 in 2015/16. Albeit a derby game which encouraged less risky plays, there were still 6 new faces in the lineup compared to the previous match.
In the 2016/17 Juventus versus Atalanta match, they won 3-2 with Daniele Rugani, Tomás Rincón, and Mario Mandžukić being the only new starters.
2017-18 saw Juventus win 2-0 against Genoa. Eight players were different from the previous match.
The 2018-19 season saw a 2-0 victory over Bologna, with goals from Federico Bernardeschi and Moise Kean guaranteeing their advancement.
In 2021-22 Juventus secured a 4-1 victory over Sampdoria. Allegri again introduced seven new players into the lineup.
In the 2022-23 Juventus-Monza 2-1 match, Allegri made a record 9 changes between league and cup matches.