On Saturday, Juventus will face city rivals Torino for the 204th official (245th overall) edition of the Derby della Mole. Although the Bianconeri and the Granata sit at opposite ends of the table, with one team fighting for the Scudetto while the other battles relegation, there will still be lots of pressure on each manager, regardless.
Especially on Andrea Pirlo. The former Juventus midfielder, who is in his debut season the tactician's bench, is reportedly running out of time to save his career as coach of the side he once played for. According to reports emanating from Italy, Pirlo has just two matches to prove his worth to Juve's executives, and that includes Saturday's upcoming derby tie.
Juventus headed into the international break on a sour note as they lost 1-0 to minnows Benevento. That has left them
Now, they've been dealt another major blow. First, it was announced that veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon will miss this match as the 43-year-old has been handed a one-match ban for "blasphemy". In Italy, uttering what's deemed as blasphemous phrases can incur a ban.
They'll also have to make do without Leonardo Bonucci, who recently tested positive for COVID-19.
And now, three key players - Weston McKennie, Paulo Dybala, and Arthur - will also miss out. This is due to the American star holding a party which his two teammates, plus others attending - which is a violation of COVID-19 protocol in Italy. Police arrived around 23:30 after a neighbor called them and ended up having to break up McKennie's celebrations, which resulted in a fine for the players, and earlier today, Pirlo confirmed that none of the trio will be called up for Saturday's match.
