2,474 days after he last appeared for Juventus, Paul Pogba once again donned the famous black and white stripes for a cameo appearance in Tuesday’s victorious Turin derby.
The World Cup winner has spent his second spell with the Old Lady affected by a knee injury he sustained during the preseason. However, as Juventus prepare for an intriguing game against Roma on Sunday night, Pogba is not the only fitness concern for Massimiliano Allegri.
Here’s everything to know about Allegri’s absence and any doubts over the selection process this weekend.
the club as a whole can be punished with a 15-point penalty This season however no individual Juve player is facing a ban for traveling to the Stadio Olimpico.
Manuel Locatelli is once again available for selection after sitting out the midweek derby against Torino. Juve Locatelli had dropped five points from the last three games this season and were at risk of losing more after falling behind twice to their city rivals in the first half.
However, Juan Cuadrado and Alex Sandro both equalized before Juve centre-back Gleeson Bremner put the Bianconeri ahead against his former employers after the break. Adrien Rabiot sealed all three points with Juve’s fourth goal in the last ten minutes of the night.
With Locatelli returning, Allegri has been able to welcome back talented young midfielder Fabio Miretti from injury. The 19-year-old missed the last three games with an ankle problem but will be part of the party traveling to Rome later this week.
Will not join against Arkadiusz Milik Roma, Only Dusan Vlahovic has scored more Serie A goals for Juve than the loanee this season, although injury has limited Milik to fewer minutes. The Poland international has been sidelined since January with a hamstring problem from which he is yet to recover.
Mattia De Sciglio has missed four months of the campaign with a similar problem and has been sidelined once again with a hamstring injury after his recent run in the team. Long-absent Cayo George still waiting for his first serie a appearances from 2021 while he is inches back from a broken patella.
Pogba He was given a cautious 22 minutes against Torino on Tuesday night and received a rousing reception from the Allianz Stadium despite barely touching the ball.
Rather than fuss over his 50% pass accuracy, Allegri was more concerned with Pogba’s physical response to his first competitive appearance for any club since April. “He reacted well, he trained yesterday and he is fine,” the Juve manager revealed ahead of Sunday’s game.
However, Allegri overcame Pogba’s expectations to suddenly produce the all-action performances that defined his first spell in Turin and convinced Manchester United to make him the world’s most expensive player. “At the moment though, he is just a good substitute on the bench,” Allegri explained.