The teams
Torino F.C are set to host Juventus FC on Saturday evening in a Serie A showdown between the two teams from Turin. This match is much more than just a regular match though, as it is the Turin Derby or also known as the Derby della mole. This clash between the two always gets the players and the fans extra motivated and sometimes even gets tempers flaring. As both teams are in need of a vital win, it will surely be an intense match.
The Granata have struggled as of late, as they are winless in their last five matches and have only scored 11 goals in their 10 Serie A matches. These numbers are not nearly good enough for a Walter Mazzarri side that are hoping to finish at the top end of the table and possibly in a UEFA Europa League spot. After their midweek 4-0 loss to SS Lazio, Il Toro will have an even tougher task come Saturday night against a Juventus team that failed to impress midweek also.
The Bianconeri very narrowly squeezed out a 2-1 win Wednesday against Genoa C.F.C thanks to a last-minute penalty by Cristiano Ronaldo. However, if they play that poorly against this Torino side they will surely get punished. With FC Internazionale in second place in the Serie A standings and only one point behind Juve, any slip-ups by Juventus could prove costly to their title hopes.
Possible lineups
Torino (3-5-2): Salvatore Sirigu; Koffi Djidji, Armando Izzo, Lyanco; Ola Aina, Sasa Lukic, Soualiho Meite, Daniele Baselli, Diego Laxalt; Simone Verdi, Andrea Belotti
Juventus (4-3-3): Wojciech Szczesny; Juan Cuadrado, Leonardo Bonucci, Matthijs de Ligt, Mattia De Sciglio; Emre Can, Rodrigo Bentancur, Blaise Matuidi; Douglas Costa, Gonzalo Higuain, Cristiano Ronaldo
Injuries
Torino look to be missing defender Kevin Bonifazi, and midfielder Tomas Rincon due to injuries. Mazzarri will also be without the suspended Nicolas N'Koulou who picked up a red card in their last match against Lazio.
Maurizio Sarri seems to be without the injured Giorgio Chiellini, Miralem Pjanic and Marko Pjaca. Also, midfielder Adrien Rabiot will miss out as he also picked up a red card in the previous match.
Who to watch
From this Torino side keep an eye on their leader and their captain, Andrea Belotti. Quite simply their best and probably their most important player, watch for Belotti to lead this team from the front with his skill, determination and power. With five goals in ten games thus far, look for Belotti to do everything in his power to increase that number in Saturday's clash.
From this Juve side look for their pacy and tricky winger Douglas Costa to make an impact now that he has returned from injury. Costa was very impressive until he went down with an injury and Sarri will be hoping for much of the same from the Brazilian going forward. Also, after a rather disappointing display on Wednesday, look for Ronaldo to have a bounce-back game and hopefully once again lead his team to another, but much less nervy victory.
Match details
First place Juventus travel to the Olimpico Grande Torino and take on their thirteenth place Turin counterparts in the first Turin Derby of the season. Kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m (GMT+1) Saturday night, as both teams will be looking for a crucial victory, in what will most likely be a rather intense fixture.