Sporting Lisbon and Juventus will square up this Thursday in Portugal for the second leg of their 2022/23 Europa League quarter-final tie.
The hosts lost 1-0 in their first leg, where the breathing difficulties of Juventus ‘keeper Wojciech Szczęsny grabbed the headlines. However, the Pole has since been declared fit for this tie and should be back between the sticks.
But this tie is far from over as the discontinuation of the away goals rule gives the hosts a chance to reach the UEL semis for only the second time ever, with coach Rúben Amorim reassuring fans that “the margin is so slim and we must have faith” after the loss in Turin.
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A much-changed Sporting side drew 1-1 in their league match with Arouca on Sunday, losing ground on European qualification, making the progression from this tie vital.
Yet, with the Lions having failed to win at Estádio José Alvalade across their last four European home matches (D2, L2) and considering they have lost each of the last six two-legged ties with Italian clubs, home fans may not be bullish.
Juventus also lost ground in their push for the European spots after falling 1-0 to Sassuolo on Sunday ahead of a troika of key matches in three different competitions (UEL, Serie A and Coppa Italia) that could decide where their season is heading.
But they should be confident after the first-leg win made it four consecutive European victories with a clean sheet for the first time since the 2016/17 Champions League campaign. However, coach Massimiliano Allegri identified “a few mistakes” and some areas where “the lads can improve” following that leg.
The Old Lady needs those improvements to stabilise their away form that has landed three losses across five competitive trips (W2), including two in a row. Four of those results have come by a single-goal margin, meaning we can’t rule out another tight game.
So an under 2.5 goals game is a possibility here.
