Juventus will be hoping to continue with their winning ways when they invite direct rivals Udinese to the Juventus Stadium in what has the potential to be an explosive encounter on Saturday.
Fresh from a 3-0 thrashing of Roma in the Coppa Italia on Tuesday, the Old Lady know that if they manage to claim maximum points against Udinese they would move six points clear of the visitors, and consolidate their position at the top of the Serie A standings.
Just over a month ago, on December 21 to be precise, the two sides fought out a goalless draw in a round 1 catch up game, further highlighting the fact that we can expect a very evenly balanced encounter at the Juventus stadium on Saturday.
However, Juventus come into the clash as the odds on favourites, not only because of their home-field advantage, but because they continue to remain unbeaten this season, with six wins and three draws from nine home matches.
While Udinese have the best home record of the competition, with nine wins and one draw from ten games, their away record leaves a lot to be desired, as they have only notched up two victories and four draws, with the remaining three matches ending in defeats.
What makes matters worse for Francesco Guidolin's men is the fact that they will be unable to count with the services of Ghanain midfield enforcers Kwadwo Asamoah and Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu who are both representing their national team at the African Cup of Nations. While defender Mehdi Benatia will also miss the clash as he is representing Morocco in the tournament.
Juventus boss Antonio Conte will also be forced to make some modifications to his squad, as midfielders Simone Pepe and Claudio Marchisio are also doubtful for the match after picking up knocks in the victory over Atalanta last week.
However, the league leaders will be boosted by the return of Fabio Quagliarella who has successfully undergone surgery on his fractured cheekbone. Another player who will return to the squad is third-choice goalkeeper Alex Manninger, who has recovered from a twisted ankle.
If Udinese want to return home with a positive result, their chances of achieving this lie on the shoulders of scoring-machine Antonio Di Natale, who has conjured up 14 goals this season to join AC Milan's Zlatan Ibrahimovic at the top of the scoring charts.
It will be the striker's responsibility to break a rock-solid Juventus defence that has only conceded two goals in their last seven league games.
Just over a month ago, on December 21 to be precise, the two sides fought out a goalless draw in a round 1 catch up game, further highlighting the fact that we can expect a very evenly balanced encounter at the Juventus stadium on Saturday.
However, Juventus come into the clash as the odds on favourites, not only because of their home-field advantage, but because they continue to remain unbeaten this season, with six wins and three draws from nine home matches.
While Udinese have the best home record of the competition, with nine wins and one draw from ten games, their away record leaves a lot to be desired, as they have only notched up two victories and four draws, with the remaining three matches ending in defeats.
What makes matters worse for Francesco Guidolin's men is the fact that they will be unable to count with the services of Ghanain midfield enforcers Kwadwo Asamoah and Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu who are both representing their national team at the African Cup of Nations. While defender Mehdi Benatia will also miss the clash as he is representing Morocco in the tournament.
Juventus boss Antonio Conte will also be forced to make some modifications to his squad, as midfielders Simone Pepe and Claudio Marchisio are also doubtful for the match after picking up knocks in the victory over Atalanta last week.
However, the league leaders will be boosted by the return of Fabio Quagliarella who has successfully undergone surgery on his fractured cheekbone. Another player who will return to the squad is third-choice goalkeeper Alex Manninger, who has recovered from a twisted ankle.
If Udinese want to return home with a positive result, their chances of achieving this lie on the shoulders of scoring-machine Antonio Di Natale, who has conjured up 14 goals this season to join AC Milan's Zlatan Ibrahimovic at the top of the scoring charts.
It will be the striker's responsibility to break a rock-solid Juventus defence that has only conceded two goals in their last seven league games.
