Juventus will be looking to break out of its scoring slump. September 30th, 2008
Juventus will be looking to break out of its scoring slump. When it visits Champions League newcomer BATE Borisov in Belarus on Tuesday.
Juventus was held to a 0-0 draw by Sampdoria on Saturday and hasn’t scored more than one goal in a game since beating Slovakian side Artmedia 4-0 in Champions League qualifying on Aug. 13.
“We’ve made mistakes and we’ve paid for them,” Juve defender Giorgio Chiellini said. “But I think we’re on the right road and slowly but surely we’ll be able to win again. It’s not just the forwards fault. We’ve also got to dictate play better from behind.”
Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon will miss the game in Minsk with a thigh injury and striker David Trezeguet is out until at least January after surgery on both knees.
Finishing with 10 men, BATE put on a respectable performance in a 2-0 loss to nine-time champion Real Madrid in the club’s opening match of Group H.
Juventus and Madrid lead the group with three points each, while BATE and Zenit St. Petersburg have zero.
“Our match with Real Madrid was a good lesson for us,” BATE coach Viktor Goncharenko said Monday. “One cannot buy such experience and I hope we will feel more comfortable against Juventus.
“As in Madrid, we do not know what to expect from our opponents. We had never before played against such teams. But we are capable of challenging any team and we will try to get a positive result.”
BATE will be without defender Anri Khagush, who was sent off against Madrid, and injured team captain Aleksandr Ermakovic, who is out for the season with a knee injury.
But the Belarus side will have its strike duo of Gennady Bliznyuk and Vitaly Radionov back after both were suspended for the Madrid game.
“Blizhyuk and Radionov are our key strikers and we definitely missed them in Madrid,” Goncharenko said. “We are going to give Juventus a real fight and combat for every ball. We are really looking to play good football and take off points from Claudio Ranieri’s side.”
Juventus left Christian Poulsen off its roster for rest and fellow midfielder Cristiano Zanetti is still out injured.
With Trezeguet unavailable, Ranieri will likely rely on Alessandro Del Piero again after the captain scored from a free kick in Juve’s opening 1-0 win over Zenit. Newly signed Brazilian forward Amauri and Vincenzo Iaquinta are the other options in attack.
Amauri has scored three league goals since arriving from Palermo, while Iaquinta is scoreless upon his return from injury.
Italy under-21 standout Sebastian Giovinco could also provide a spark, having provided the cross that Amauri headed in during a 1-1 draw with Catania last week.
Juventus has drawn its last two matches.
“Facing teams like these takes away your desire to play,” said midfielder Mauro Camoranesi, who returned from injury in the scoreless draw at Sampdoria.
Juventus could also have a hard time getting motivated to play BATE, but the first team from Belarus in the competition has had some respectable results of late.
“BATE is very dangerous in counterattacks and we should be very careful tomorrow,” Ranieri said in Minsk through a translator. “Of 15 home matches there wasn’t a single one in which BATE has not scored a goal. We really respect Borisov.”
Besides its record 23-match unbeaten streak to start its domestic league, BATE remained unbeaten home and away through all three Champions League qualifying rounds – against Valur Reykjavik, Anderlecht and Levski Sofia.
“Considering the level of our opponent, a draw tomorrow will be a good result,” Goncharenko said. “But still we will strive for victory.”