At one point, Sampdoria were flying high. Blucerchiati supporters had plenty to smile about as Sinisa Mihajlovic's men were comfortably in the running for European football next season. After a disappointing 12th placed finish last campaign, they had started this season off well and were even in contention for a Champions League spot briefly, but eventually settled into the Europa League berths for the vast majority of this edition of Serie A.
However, they are now without a win in their last five fixtures, which, ahead of welcoming league leaders Juventus to the Stadio Comunale Luigi Ferraris, will have fans concerned. Not only is this sudden slump their longest period sans a victory, but also their dreams for featuring in Europe also appear to be under threat.
Closing the gap: City rivals Genoa are now breathing down Samp's neck, with Fiorentina not too far behind in the race for the Europa League
Juventus, not surprisingly, do enjoy the overwhelming historical advantage against Sampdoria:
Sabato #SampJuve sarà la sfida numero 130 in @SerieA_TIM: 27 vittorie blucerchiate, 64 per noi (38 pareggi). pic.twitter.com/wBzxvzsGOM
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) April 30, 2015
"Saturday will be the 130th meeting in Serie A, with 27 wins for Sampdoria, 64 for Juventus, and 38 draws"
Nonetheless, the Blucerchiati have shown in recent times their ability to mix it up with the reigning Scudetto champions. It was only two years ago that they became the first Serie A side to successfully defeat Juventus at their home ground and in fact, they completed a double over la Vecchia Signoria during the 2012/2013 season.
So although they have only won two out of their last 12 home games against Juventus, Mihajlovic, who saw his team earn a hard-fought draw this last December, still hopes his squad can spoil the party for Juventus:
Mihajlovic: «Juve, scudetto meritato, ma non domani». Così il tecnico blucerchiato #SampJuve pic.twitter.com/N7zhKeHzSm
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) May 1, 2015
"Juventus deserve the Scudetto, but not tomorrow [in our stadium]..."
Anteprima #Mihajlovic su @SkySport e @SampTV: «Contro la Juve potrò schierare il mio più grande bomber...» #SampJuve
— U.C. Sampdoria (@sampdoria) May 1, 2015
"...[and] against [them] I will deploy my strongest attacker."
Samdporia, along with Juventus, are the only side to avoid a loss at home in league play this season. Of course, this will come under threat as they prepare to welcome Massimiliano Allegri's men later today. The former AC Milan coach, who will next have to take on fellow Italian tactician Carlo Ancelotti in next week's Champions League semi-final clash with Real Madrid, has enjoyed an impressive debut season in Turin as they seek to clinch what would be a historic fourth straight league title:
The last time they won more than four was from 1930 to 1935, in which they earned five league titles in five seasons. La Vecchia Signora have not enjoyed success on the road as of late - first drawing Monaco in a draw stalemate in the Champions League and suffering surprise defeats to Parma and then Torino in the Derby della Mole.
Will Sampdoria be able to put a damper on Juve's title celebrations? Or will the reigning champions wrap things up domestically as they hope for what would be a historic Treble?
Simply tune in to find out!
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