Black & White & Read All Over - UEFA Europa League: Juventus vs. Fiorentina, Leg 1, full match coverage"Alla Juventus vincere non è importante. È l'unica cosa che conta."https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47437/blackwhiteread-fave.png2014-03-14T13:24:21+01:00http://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/rss/stream/52704552014-03-14T13:24:21+01:002014-03-14T13:24:21+01:00Mario Gomez's late goal bursts Juve's bubble
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<figcaption>Valerio Pennicino</figcaption>
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<p>Quarter-Final qualification at risk for Bianconeri after Fiorentina equalize late on at the Juventus Stadium</p> <p>So, four days after the Serie A meeting at the Juventus Stadium, the Bianconeri once again welcomed rivals Fiorentina to Turin. The game had a frantic start, and after two minutes, a great long ball from Angelo Ogbonna found Mauricio Isla, who crossed for his international teammate, Arturo Vidal. Fiorentina keeper Neto saved easily.</p>
<p>This was not the case a minute later as Claudio Marchisio crossed from the left and the ball came off Sebastian Giovinco and fell to Vidal, who duly converted his 18th goal of the season. At this rate, El Rey could hit the 30-goal mark this season.</p>
<p>Juve continued to dominate the early period of the game with half chances created for Marchisio and Vidal. Some impressive possession play then led to an Kwadwo Asamoah cross which the Fiorentina defence did well to clear.</p>
<p>Fiorentina’s first real effort of note in the 14th minute as former Juventus player Alberto Aquilani had his shot deflected a yard or so wide. Three minutes later a bad touch from Martin Caceres led to a Fiorentina attack that ended up with Gigi Buffon making a save from Matias Fernandez and Asamoah clearing his lines well.</p>
<p>Giovinco then had two opportunities that could given Juve a vital 2-0 lead. The first came from a great touch from Osvaldo which looked like it had put the diminutive striker through but the Fiorentina keeper Neto came out of nowhere sweep the ball clear. A few minutes later Giovinco had an effort from a good position but made it easy for Neto by hitting it straight at him. Juve were upping the ante again at this stage and in the 25th minute Neto made another save from Vidal’s header after a neat cross from Marchisio.</p>
<p>Vidal came close again in the 37th minute with a towering header that hit the crossbar after some nice work by Pirlo down the left hand side. At this stage one started to get the feeling that this was going to be one of those games that Juve were going to rue not scoring that vital second goal. This feeling intensified even more after Giovinco shot wide after a nice one two with Pirlo. Giovinco can’t be faulted for lack of effort but really needed to be more clinical in front of goal.</p>
<p>The last chance of the first half fell to Borja Valero whose shot was deflected wide off Ogbonna.</p>
<p>The second half became a much more tactical affair with the Bianconeri sitting back a lot more. Juve struggled to create any real chances and in the 63rd minute Antonio Conte made his first substition of the game, replacing Giovinco with Fernando Llorente. Shortly afterwards, Fiorentina manager Vincenzo Montella decided to substitute his striker, Ale Matri, for George McFly doppelganger Mario Gomez. This would prove to be a very astute move as in the 78th minute the German striker scored the equalizer for Fiorentina. Marchiso gave away the ball in midfield and an excellent over the top ball from Ilicic caught out Caceres and Ogbonna as the defence had pushed up. The former Bayern Munich man still had plenty to do but a great touch and finish past Buffon proved he hasn’t lost his clinical ability despite a long term injury.</p>
<p>The passage of play that led to the Gomez goal happened so fast and it was perfect example of how a small mistake against good opposition can be punished in seconds. All of a sudden a sense of urgency appeared in Juve’s game. This in turn led to more counter attacking opportunity to Fiorentina and Gomez shot wide after 81 minutes. Almost immediately Juve responded and some brilliant play between Pogba and Llorente led to the young French midfielder shooting just wide with his left foot.</p>
<p>That proved to be the last chance of the game for Juve but in hindsight it was the opportunities of the first half that should have sealed the first leg. In the end Fiorentina could have gone on to win the game but Buffon denied Borja Valero and Vargas’ long range efforts late in the game.</p>
<p>The advantage definitely lies with Fiorentina for various reasons — the away goal, home advantage and a recent poor performance by Juve at the Franchi. With qualification for the quarter finals now seriously at risk it will be vital to get a 90 minute performance next week that matches the first 45 minutes tonight. Following the dissapointment of the Champions League and Coppa Italia exits that is the least one can expect next week from Conte’s men.</p>
<p><strong>PAGELLE</strong></p>
<p><strong>Buffon: 6.5</strong> – Can’t really be considered at fault for the goal as the entire defence was caught out. Made some very good saves at the end of the game which could prove vital in the tie.</p>
<p><strong>Caceres: 6</strong> – Looked under pressure on a few occasions and allowed Gomez to break free for the equalizer.</p>
<p><strong>Ogbonna: 6.5 </strong>- An impressive performance at the centre of the back three. Kept former Juventino Matri very quiet. Was caught off guard for the Gomez goal but so was everyone else.</p>
<p><strong>Chiellini: 6.5</strong> – Played well defensively and even had a few marauding runs forward.</p>
<p><strong>Isla: 6 </strong>– Started the game well and it looked like we were on for a repeat performance of the Trabzonspor tie. Faded badly in the second half.</p>
<p><strong>Vidal: 7.5</strong> – Again in the right place at the right time for the opening goal. Could easily have scored a hat trick. Another all action performance from the Chilean.</p>
<p><strong>Pirlo: 6.5</strong> – Not the maestro’s greatest performance in a Juve shirt. Got himself out of trouble impressively on a couple of occasions but wasn’t completely on his game.</p>
<p><strong>Marchisio: 6.5</strong> – Provided some dangerous crosses from the left (one of which lead to the goal). Gave away the ball for the equalizer. I guess they evened themselves out.</p>
<p><strong>Asamoah: 7.0</strong> – Had some impressive dribbles during the game but unfortunately couldn’t repeat the magic of last Sunday’s game.</p>
<p><strong>Giovinco: 6.5</strong> – Didn’t get the same space he had against Trabzonspor. Could have been more clinical in front of goal</p>
<p><strong>Osvaldo: 5.5 </strong>– Probably the Oriundo’s worst performance in a Juve shirt. It just didn’t happen for him tonight</p>
<p>Subs:</p>
<p><strong>Padoin: SV</strong></p>
<p><strong>Pogba: 6 </strong> – Didn’t really have much of an impact apart from good effort on goal after one two with Llorente.</p>
<p><strong>Llorente: 6</strong> – Wasn’t able to dominate the Fiorentina back line. Combined well with Pogba for his effort</p>
<p><strong>Coach:</strong></p>
<p><strong>Conte: 6.5</strong> – If it were judged on the first half this would be higher. I’m not sure what happened at half time in the locker room but a different Juve side came out in the second half.</p>
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https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2014/3/14/5507600/uefa-europa-leaguejuventus-fiorentina-final-score-match-recapafiorini2014-03-14T00:00:04+01:002014-03-14T00:00:04+01:00Juventus 1 - Fiorentina 1: Initial reaction
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<figcaption>Your game recap in one single photo. | Valerio Pennicino</figcaption>
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<p>Juventus play terribly after the break let a second-half lead slip away against Fiorentina. Where have I seen this before?</p> <p>For the first 45 minutes, Juventus were looking pretty darn good compared to their last game against Fiorentina. They had the lead after just three minutes thanks Arturo Vidal's 18th goal (!!) in all competitions. Their passing was crisp, their ability to create scoring chances was on full display and had Fiorentina's defense scrambling while trying to stop it.</p>
<p>And then, something happened — again.</p>
<p>Bad second-half tactics from Antonio Conte? Yeah, definitely.</p>
<p>Letting your foot off the gas and enabling Fiorentina to get back in the game? Yeah, definitely.</p>
<p>There's other obviously things that contributed to Juventus' 1-1 draw with Fiorentina in the first leg of their Round of 16 Europa League matchup on Thursday night, but it's safe to narrow it down to one distinct statement right here: The team in black and white that was up 1-0 at the half wasn't the same team that came out of the locker room and proceeded to play in the second half.</p>
<p>Juve needed to grab a second goal and never they did. Fiorentina, much to their credit, just hung around. And with Juventus clearly shifting their play to protect the lead rather than pushing for a second goal, Fiorentina was able to take advantage of it, eventually getting their coveted away goal courtesy of Mario Gomez just 13 minutes from full time.</p>
<p>Stupid Gomez Button. I hate you now. More than ever before.</p>
<p>All of the work Juve did in the first half — especially the first 15-20 minutes — gone just like that. But it's hard to say that Fiorentina didn't deserve it. Juventus took their foot of the gas pedal and got punished for it. Fiorentina is a good team and they'll will make you pay for your own mistakes. Juventus' mistake was letting them hang around for far too long. And because of it, we're all headed to Florence knowing that Juve doesn't have a lead in its back pocket.</p>
<blockquote data-partner="tweetdeck" class="twitter-tweet">
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Conte&src=hash">#Conte</a>: We’re disappointed with the result, but not the performance. We created plenty of opportunities and deserved more than we got. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23UEL&src=hash">#UEL</a></p>
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) <a href="https://twitter.com/juventusfcen/statuses/444243428877291521">March 13, 2014</a>
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<p>That damn second half. You just can't help but make a face at it.</p>
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<p>Il commento di Buffon al palo di Matos. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23jvtblive&src=hash">#jvtblive</a> <a href="http://t.co/9pttofyPOU">pic.twitter.com/9pttofyPOU</a></p>
— Antonio Corsa (@AntonioCorsa) <a href="https://twitter.com/AntonioCorsa/statuses/442649052204007424">March 9, 2014</a>
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<p>Bingo.</p>
<p>We know what happened the last time Juve were in Florence. But it's not like winning there is impossible. In seven days, these two teams will play for the right to get to the Europa League semifinals at the scene of that dreadful day in October. You know Fiorentina will be fired up since they will be in front of the home crowd at the Franchi. The only question will be if Juventus can answer the call and advance.</p>
<p><b>Random thoughts and observations</b></p>
<ul>
<li>/grumble/<br><br>
</li>
<li>Arturo Vidal could have had a hat trick in the first half if not for a brilliant Neto save and then smashing a header off the stupid crossbar. The opportunities to double the lead were there for the taking. Juventus just couldn't get that second goal they oh so desperately needed in the first half.<br><br>
</li>
<li>Mauricio Isla's game might be Exhibit A of how different Juventus were in the first half compared to the second half. It was a throwback kind of effort from Isla in the first half, taking advantage of plenty of space down the right flank. The second half? Barely a peep. Polar opposite halves for Isla — and for Juventus as a whole.<br><br>
</li>
<li>Can you imagine what it would have been like if Gigi Buffon didn't make one of those saves towards the end of the second half? Yep, Oct. 20 in Florence all over again.<br><br>
</li>
<li>How things change from one game against Fiorentina to the other: Mario Gomez did next to nothing on Sunday afternoon. Thursday night? That first touch, that game-tying goal, that frustration that followed. Gomez gave Fiorentina the exact boost Vincenzo Montella was hoping for when the German striker was introduced for Ale Matri in the 67th minute.<br><br>
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<li>Even though we're all grumpy because of the result, I want to say something: It's pretty nice to have Giorgio Chiellini back in the starting lineup again.<br><br>
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<li>Have I said how much I missed first-half Juventus during the course of the second half? Because I did.<br><br>
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<li>I'm off to go bang my head against the desk a few more times.</li>
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https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2014/3/14/5505948/uefa-europa-league-juventus-fiorentina-final-score-initial-reaction-random-observationsDanny Penza2014-03-13T19:35:01+01:002014-03-13T19:35:01+01:00Game Time Thread: Juventus vs. Fiorentina, Leg 1
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<figcaption>Claudio Villa</figcaption>
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<p>The league may have changed, but the opponent is going to remain the same.</p>
<p>Mere days after beating Fiorentina 1-0 in Turin, La Viola is back at Juventus Stadium. It's not Serie A action, though. It's the Europa League. The first leg of their Round of 16 tie takes place in — you guessed it — Turin and all the beauty that is Juventus Stadium.</p>
<p>Not so hard to figure out now is it?</p>
<p>There could be a lot of breaking down to be done from the first Juve-Fiorentina encounter. But since this is a simple game thread, we shall stay away from the details and just welcome the madness that comes along with a Juventus game in progress. For the courtesy of our faithful readers, though, we have three hard-hitting talking points for pre-match discussion purposes.</p>
<p>1. How will each team adjust following Sunday's match?</p>
<p>2. How much different will each team play compared to Sunday?</p>
<p>How will Fiorentina deal with the greatness of Juventus players like Simone Padoin?</p>
<p>All valid questions just waiting to be answered come kickoff at Juventus Stadium.</p>
<p>Watch with us, shall you?</p>
<p>Starting lineups for both teams will be posted HERE HERE HERE when they become available to the general public. And if you're in the mood for some Padoin with a side of Federico Peluso, well this could very well be the place for you. Just don't let the rest of us know, okay? Thanks.</p>
<p><i>UPDATE: LINEUPS ARE IN!</i></p>
<p><b>Juventus XI (3-5-2): </b>Buffon; Caceres, Ogbonna, Chiellini; Isla, Vidal, Pirlo, Marchisio, Asamoah; Osvaldo, Giovinco</p>
<p><b>Juventus bench: </b>Storari, Lichtsteiner, Barzagli, Bonucci, Padoin, Pogba, Llorente</p>
<p><b>Fiorentina XI (<strike>4-3-3</strike> 4-3-2-1):</b> Neto; Roncaglia, Rodriguez, Savic, Tomovic; Aquilani, Pizarro, Borja Valero; Mati Fernandez, Ilicic; Matri</p>
<p><b>Fiorentina bench:</b> Rosati, Pasqual, Cuadrado, Ambrosini, Vargas, Matos, Gomez</p>
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https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2014/3/13/5473120/uefa-europa-league-game-time-thread-juventus-vs-fiorentina-round-of-16-leg-1Danny Penza2014-03-13T09:00:01+01:002014-03-13T09:00:01+01:00Juventus v. Fiorentina: You choose the starting XI
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<figcaption>Paolo Bruno</figcaption>
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<p>Hey, maybe he'll listen to us this time!</p> <p>Some kind of squad rotation in the Europa League hasn't been as vast and revolutionary-like when compared to Juventus taking part in the Coppa Italia, but it's been there. It's pretty much accepted and nobody has, as of right now, opposed to Antonio Conte using a good amount of his squad's depth when it comes to the current European front Juventus is taking part in.</p>
<p>So who does Mister Conte go with? Or, better yet, who do <i>you</i> think Mister Conte should go with?</p>
<p>Here are you choices. The 20 players called up by Conte is as follows:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>1 Buffon<br>3 Chiellini<br>4 Caceres<br>5 Ogbonna<br>6 Pogba<br>8 Marchisio<br>12 Giovinco<br>13 Peluso<br>14 Llorente<br>15 Barzagli<br>18 Osvaldo<br>19 Bonucci<br>20 Padoin<br>21 Pirlo<br>22 Asamoah<br>23 Vidal<br>26 Lichtsteiner<br>30 Storari<br>33 Isla<br>34 Rubinho</p>
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<p>The obvious missing piece is that there's no "10 Tevez" on the call-up list. That means with the injured Mirko Vucinic still being out of action, Tevez not included in the 20-player list of fellas called up and Fabio Quagliarella not even on the Europa League squad list, Juventus' options against Fiorentina later today are slimmer than normal — Fernando Llorente, Dani Osvaldo and Sebastian Giovinco.</p>
<p>I think they'll be able to survive. If they don't, then we can all argue about Simone Padoin not getting any time as a striker in the post-game thread.</p>
<p>So put on your favorite Conte trucker hat, maybe even a nice suit and tie and pick which 11 players you think should start against Fiorentina tonight at Juventus Stadium. But just keep in mind that if you say Padoin should be Juve's starting regista, you will be asked to go home because you're probably drunk.</p>
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https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2014/3/13/5499624/uefa-europa-league-juventus-vs-fiorentina-you-choose-the-starting-lineupDanny Penza2014-03-12T15:05:01+01:002014-03-12T15:05:01+01:00Juventus vs. Fiorentina, Leg 1: Familiar Faces
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<figcaption>Valerio Pennicino</figcaption>
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<p>It's almost like these two teams played at Juventus Stadium a couple days ago or something. Thanks for keeping things interesting, Europa League!</p> <p>When trying to think of something to compare Juventus and Fiorentina playing one another twice within a five-day period, only one thing came to my mind: The NBA playoffs. Before you yell at me for being a stupid American, just hear me out. Two teams, open a series on a Sunday, take three days off to recuperate and make adjust to the previous, then go against one another again. Same location, virtually the same start time, virtually the same people participating.</p>
<p>So, in a way, think of Juventus vs. Fiorentina Round 2 as the second game in a best-of-three series.</p>
<p>The only thing is that Sunday was a Serie A game, this next one has something a little different on the line.</p>
<p>Instead of Juve-Viola in Italy, it's Juve-Viola in Europe. Well, it's still technically Juve-Viola in Italy, but you probably get what I'm trying to say here. The first leg of Juventus and Fiorentina's Round of 16 Europa League clash sees both teams take the same field they played on while most people in Italy enjoyed some lunch four days ago.</p>
<p>It will be different than a few days earlier, because why wouldn't it be?</p>
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<p>"We'll witness a different pace on Thursday. The manager will make his assessments, we'll need fresh legs for the game."</p>
<p>(Source: <a target="_blank" href="http://www.juventus.com/juve/en/news/barzagli_fiorentina_eng">juventus.com</a>)</p>
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<p>Those are the words of a certain central defender of Italian heritage who goes by the name of Andrea Barzagli after Juve's 1-0 win over Fiorentina on Sunday. And you know what? He's exactly right. When you have two managers of Antonio Conte and Vincenzo Montella's quality, then there's bound to be some things that are different between two clubs who know each other so well with such a short time separating each game.</p>
<p>Italy on Italy crime in Europe? What could possibly go wrong!</p>
<p><b>GOOD NEWS</b></p>
<p>This weekend's final score...</p>
<blockquote lang="en" class="twitter-tweet">
<p>FULL TIME: Juventus 1, Fiorentina 0 (Asamoah)</p>
— BWRAO (@JuventusNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/JuventusNation/statuses/442650713349308416">March 9, 2014</a>
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<p>...was better than that score from mid-October.</p>
<blockquote lang="en" class="twitter-tweet">
<p>FULL TIME: Fiorentina 4, Juventus 2</p>
— BWRAO (@JuventusNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/JuventusNation/statuses/391941517008322560">October 20, 2013</a>
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<p>See? Revenge is cool. And thanks for the kick in the ass, Fiorentina.</p>
<p><b>BAD NEWS</b></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck">
<p>Remember when Fulham defeated Juventus 4-1 in the Europa League? Well the ref who oversaw that match will be in charge of Juve - Fiorentina</p>
— Mina Rzouki (@Minarzouki) <a href="https://twitter.com/Minarzouki/statuses/443540129136001025">March 12, 2014</a>
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<p>Oh.</p>
<p>To be fair, though, the starting defense that night in London was (right to left) Salihamidzic-Zebina-Cannavaro-Grosso. That <strike>certainly</strike> might have played a part in Juventus imploding on epic proportions and crashing out of the Europa League during those awful, awful days before Conte came back and saved our sanity.</p>
<p><b>WHAT TO WATCH FOR</b></p>
<p>1. How both teams adjust after Sunday's meh-fest.</p>
<p>Juventus threw the first punch, now we wait to see how Fiorentina counter the opening blow. By no means was Sunday's 1-0 win thrilling nor anything close to a master class by Antonio Conte's squad. It was pretty simple in the first 45 minutes and the lead rightfully showed that. But the try-to-hang-on approach in the second half was far to anybody's liking. And just because they lost, Fiorentina isn't the only team that has to adjust. You know Conte has already drawn up something that is different than what his team did on Sunday. It's the game within the game between Conte and Montella — something we thought we'd only get to see twice a season in Serie A.</p>
<p>2. Who will Antonio Conte pair with Dani Osvaldo up front?</p>
<p>Two Europa League games isn't a huge sample size to draw up concrete conclusions, but I have come away with this important piece of information: Antonio Conte will start Dani Osvaldo no matter who Juve is going to be playing during their Europa League run this season. And, quite frankly, Osvaldo hasn't done anything to prove his new manager wrong, scoring a goal in each leg against Trabzonspor. The question is, who will play alongside Captain Jack Sparrow's doppelganger? If Conte had starting Carlos Tevez, <a href="http://www.football-italia.net/46313/tevez-miss-juve-fiorentina" target="_blank">that might not be the case</a>. That means two options remain — Fernando Llorente and Sebastian Giovinco. Based off of how Conte has played things in Juve's adventure with Trabzonspor, starting Llorente in the Europa League isn't really much of an option.</p>
<p>3. Does Claudio Marchisio keep a spot in the starting lineup?</p>
<p>With Andrea Pirlo being suspended in Round 1 of Juve-Fiorentina over the weekend, there's no reason to think the wonderfully bearded maestro doesn't start tomorrow night. That is, of course, Antonio Conte chooses to hold him out for the weekend. But it's not like Juve have some huuuuuuge, season-defining match on the horizon. Sure Genoa are playing well, but appearing in multiple games in a week isn't out of the equation for Pirlo. That means Conte could use the first Europa League encounter against Fiorentina to give one of either Arturo Vidal or Paul Pogba a bit of a break entering the weekend. And as a result, Marchisio will find himself playing from the start once again — albeit in a different, non-regista position.</p>
<p>4. Federico Peluso or Kwadwo Asamoah?</p>
<p>The interesting thing in this is that my preference on who starts at left wingback for Juventus could very well depend on if Juan Cuadrado starts for Fiorentina from the opening whistle. If we get Cuadrado, then I sure as hell am going to prefer Asamoah starting over Peluso. We all saw it in the first go around — Asamoah clearly won the battle in the Asamoah-Cuadrado matchup. Oh, and scored a completely awesome goal to boot.</p>
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<p>.<a href="https://twitter.com/Asabob20">@Asabob20</a>: It’s tough to play against Cuadrado. He’s great at dribbling and a tricky customer to mark. We did well to limit him and Gomez.</p>
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) <a href="https://twitter.com/juventusfcen/statuses/442674595523735553">March 9, 2014</a>
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<p>Does his performance on Sunday mean Asamoah is definitely starting tomorrow night? I really have no clue. Unlike with Osvaldo, Asamoah hasn't appeared in either of Juve's Europa League games thus far. Instead, it's been Peluso getting both the starts against Trabzonspor. Do we really need to see Peluso against Cuadrado? That's like yellow card upon yellow card just waiting to happen.</p>
<p>5. Juventus staying away from away goals.</p>
<p>The great thing about facing Trabzonspor is that we didn't even need to mess around with any of these fancy away goal thingamajigs. But I'm going to go out on a limb and say that this Fiorentina side, regardless of how much they are struggling right now (one win in their last seven league games), are better than Trabzonspor. That's not just because Juve has seen them a few more times over the last few years, it's just a general line of thinking I have. Because of that notion, the likelihood of giving up a goal is already more likely than against the previously mentioned Turks. And did I mention the first leg is at Juventus Stadium tomorrow night? Yeah, it's at Juventus Stadium tomorrow night.</p>
<p><b>My starting XI (3-5-2):</b> Buffon; Caceres, Bonucci, Ogbonna; Isla, Vidal, Pirlo, Marchisio, Asamoah; Osvaldo, Giovinco</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><b>OFFICIAL KICKOFF TIME: 9:05 P.M. IN ITALY; 4:05 P.M. ON THE EAST COAST; 1:05 P.M. ON THE WEST COAST</b></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/UP5qqDZ6aV4" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
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https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2014/3/12/5489604/uefa-europa-league-preview-juventus-fiorentina-round-of-16-leg-1Danny Penza