Beaten in the last two Supercoppa Italiana showcases, Juve are hoping for better at King Abdullah Sports City, with Cristiano Ronaldo set to start
Juventus and AC Milan will play off in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for the right to lift the Supercoppa Italiana on Wednesday.
Juve may dominate the domestic game, but in each of the last two seasons they have been foiled in their attempts to lift this trophy, beaten 3-2 by Lazio in August 2017 when it was last played for.
A year previous, it was Milan who took the title, winning on penalties in Doha, Qatar, in December 2016.
The Rossoneri, who were the losing Coppa Italia finalists from 2017-18, go into this clash hoping to cause a similar upset.
| Game | Juventus vs AC Milan |
| Date | Wednesday, January 16 |
| Time | 5:30pm GMT /12:30pm ET |
In the United States (US), the game can be watched on ESPN 2 or ESPN Deportes. It can be streamed via ESPN Deportes+
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| ESPN 2 / ESPN Deportes | ESPN Deportes+ |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game can be watched live on BT Sport 1 and livestreamed on BT Sport Live.
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| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| BT Sport 1 | BT Sport Live |
| Position | Juventus players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Szczesny, Pinsoglio, Perin |
| Defenders | De Sciglio, Chiellini, Bonucci, Rugani, Sandro |
| Midfielders | Pjanic, Matuidi, Can, Bentancur, Bernardeschi, Spinazzola, Khedira |
| Forwards | Ronaldo, Dybala, Costa, Kean |
Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri has named a strong team, including Cristiano Ronaldo, but he will have to do without Mario Mandzukic, Andrea Barzagli, Medhi Benatia and Juan Cuadrado because of injury concerns.
Allegri is set to play a 4-3-3 formation, with Rodrigo Bentancur to play in the heart of the midfield ahead of Sami Khedira.
Juventus starting XI: Szczesny; Cancelo, Bonucci, Chiellini, Alex Sandro; Bentancur, Pjanic, Matuidi; Douglas Costa, Dybala, Ronaldo
| Position | AC Milan players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Donnarumma, Reina |
| Defenders | Romagnoli, Rodriguez, Musacchio, Abate, Zapata, Calabria, Strnic, Simic |
| Midfielders | Calhanoglou, Castillejo, Bakayoko, Montolivo, Laxalt, Kessie, Halilovic, Conti |
| Forwards | Higuain, Cutrone, Borini |
Milan also have selection headaches: Lucas Biglia, Giacomo Bonaventura, Andrea Bertolacci and Mattia Caldara are all missing, while Suso must serve a one-match suspension.
With rumours swirling about a move to Chelsea, Gonzalo Higuain will start from the bench, with Patrick Cutrone taking his place in the lineup.
AC Milan starting XI: Donnarumma; Calabria, Zapata, Romagnoli, Rodriguez; Kessie, Bakayoko, Paqueta; Castillejo, Cutrone, Calhanoglu
Juventus are rated as 1/2 favourites by bet365. Milan can be backed at 13/2, while a draw over 90 minutes is priced at 31/10.
Click here to see all of bet 365’s offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more.
The 60,000 capacity King Abdullah Sports City will be the stage where Serie A and Coppa Italia champions Juventus meet AC Milan in the Supercoppa Italiana.
Both teams returned to action after the winter break at the weekend in the Coppa Italia, with both recording 2-0 victories, Juve overcoming Bologna and their opponents defeating Sampdoria.
The Turin side start the match as clear favourites, having established a nine-point lead at the summit of Serie A, with 17 wins and two draws from their 19 league fixtures so far this season. Milan, on the other hand, find themselves in fourth, an astonishing 22 points back of their Turin rivals.
After missing out on this title in each of the last two years, Massimiliano Allegri’s side are hungry to pick up the silverware in Saudi Arabia.
While there is slightly more pride riding on this game than in previous matches as both teams are competing to be the first club to reach eight Supercoppa victories, Allegri sees this as a dress rehearsal for the Champions League , in which his side will tackle Atletico Madrid in the spring.
“This is good practice to prepare for elimination rounds,” the coach said, although he did indicate that he hoped to avoid the eventuality of extra-time and potentially penalties, which is how the match will be decided if it finishes all square after 90 minutes.
In the opposite dugout, Gennaro Gattuso is acutely aware of the challenge that faces his side, having seen them lose 4-0 in the Coppa Italia final in May.
“We are up against a side that has been dominant in Italy and Europe for eight years, they know how to play for trophies, but it’s important for us to be here and feel this experience too,” he said.
“We’ve got to play our game with a relaxed approach, because the strongest team doesn’t always win in a one-off match. We want to see a great performance to beat Juve, we’re well aware of that.”
One man who the Rossoneri will have to police particularly closely if they are to experience the success that their coach craves is Paulo Dybala.
The Argentine has scored three times in the Supercoppa Italiana previously and, if he were to notch again, he would become the all-time top scorer in the 31-year history of the competition.