After a week-long break, the strongest tournament in the Old Continent - the UEFA Champions League - returns to the stadiums. After playing three matches, the first stage of the group round has ended, and now teams will face familiar opponents. Turin's "Juventus" - Piraeus's "Olympiacos" For the Italian champions, the UEFA Europa League game is looming for the second year in a row - so far, "Juventus" is ranked third in the group. The only victory "bianconeri" managed to achieve was in the middle of September when they defeated the Swedish champions "Malmo" at home. Turin's team coach Massimiliano Allegri said yesterday that this match will be very important for his players: "We need a win. This will be almost a matter of life and death. Currently, we only have three points and we must improve the situation." "Juventus" really needs to focus - in the last two Champions League matches, the Italians failed to score a single goal. The fluctuating form of the Serie A leader is also evident in last week's minimal loss to "Genoa." Back then, the "old gentlemen" also lacked sharpness in the attack. Massimiliano Allegri also mentioned before the match that due to some players' injuries, the team's tactical scheme has not yet been decided. However, something needs to be changed for sure, as between two Champions League losses - stumbling against last night's opponent "Olympiacos." The memories of visiting Turin don't evoke the warmest feelings for the Greek champions - the last time the "reds" visited, they were crushed by "Juventus" 7-0. However, memories shouldn't be bad either, as this defeat was experienced more than a decade ago. Piraeus's "Olympiacos" is preparing seriously for the match. The team's strategist Michel allowed Ibrahim Afellay, Delvin N'Dinga, and Leandro Salino to rest in the Greek league duel last weekend. These players will be particularly crucial in preventing the Italian team from taking over the midfield and defending against opponent attacks. Their absence led "Oly" to settle for just one point against Tripolis's "Asteras," and the gap with the championship-leading Salonika's "PAOK" increased to five points. The living legend of Italian football, Andrea Pirlo, described the upcoming match as a final, but there is still a long way to go for the Greeks. Even in defeat, the visitors would not lose hope of reaching the tournament's quarterfinals, and this could lead to a freer game than their opponents. On the other hand, the "Bianconeri" will have to deal not only with their opponents but also with psychological pressure. Injuries: The hosts will certainly have to do without the injured Patrice Evra, Andrea Barzagli, Simone Pepe, and Martino Cacereso, while the performances of Kwadwo Asamoah and Angelo Ogbonna are questionable. Among the visitors, the likely absence will be the injured defender Alberto Botia. Predicted starting line-ups: "Juventus": G. Buffon, G. Chiellini, S. Lichsteiner, L. Bonucci, P. Pogba, A. Pirlo, S. Padoin, A. Vidal, R. Perreyra, C. Tevez, A. Morata. "Olympiacos": Roberto, I. Maniatis, O. Elabdellaoui, E. Abidal, L. Salino, L. Milivojević, I. Afellay, D. N'dinga, A. Dominguez, P. Kasami, K. Mitroglou. Summary of the first head-to-head matches:
