“McKennie’s left-back is a technical decision for Juventus” in the surprising 4-2-3-1

TURIN, ITALY – DECEMBER 11: Juventus head coach Thiago Motta looks on during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD6 match between Juventus and Manchester City at Juventus Stadium on December 11, 2024 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)

Juventus coach Thiago Motta insists his surprise decisions against Fiorentina are not based on fitness, instead deploying Weston McKennie at left-back as a “technical decision”.

Kick-off takes place at 5pm GMT at the Allianz Juventus Stadium in Turin.

You can follow all the build-up and action from today’s four Serie A games in the live blog.

Both teams go into the weekend round with 31 points, although the Viola still have a game to play against Inter in February.

The Bianconeri finally ended their run of four straight draws in Serie A with a win against Monza, but this is a far bigger test and a neck-and-neck race for European places.

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“Aside from the other results, it’s a good opportunity to play a great game in front of our fans. It is true that Fiorentina had two negative results, but they have done well this season and played good football, so we have to play at the highest level to be competitive,” Thiago Motta told Sky Sport Italia.

Samuel Mbangula was selected in the attacking trio behind Dusan Vlahovic, leaving both Kenan Yildiz and Nico Gonzalez on the bench. The trainer was therefore asked whether this was due to fitness reasons.

“No, these are all technical decisions based on what I see in training and on the pitch, and there also remains the possibility of coming off the bench later in the game.”

Does this also mean that Andrea Cambiaso is now the second choice at left-back after McKennie and so it is no longer an emergency approach for the USMNT midfielder?

“Weston is proving not only now but also over the years that he can do anything,” explained Thiago Motta.

“So today he starts as a left-back, but has the freedom to move around and play other positions. Andrea is on the bench today, we’ll see if he and the others can contribute.”

Juventus begins 2025 in Riyadh with the Supercoppa Italiana semi-final against Milan on January 3. If they win this, the final will follow with Inter or Atalanta.