A lot of times this season, we have talked about the ruthlessness of Juventus’ schedule. The fact that one fixture after another has been an absolute gauntlet of sorts — most notably what felt like the entire month of April — is something that will be one of the lasting takeaways from the 2022-23 season that is reaching its finish line.
But here’s the thing about this weekend, folks.
Juventus are not facing a tricky mid-table side that they’ve dropped points to over the last season or two in between a big Europa League two-legged tie like they did last month.
Juventus vs. Cremonese match preview: Time, TV schedule, and how to watch the Serie A
No, no. This time in the weekend Serie A fixture sandwiched in between two big Europa League ties is a meeting with … 19th-placed Cremonese, which is very, very close to being mathematically relegated to Serie B. It is very much the kind of matchup that should allow Max Allegri to rotate his squad heavily with the second leg against Sevilla in view, setting things up to make sure that his team can try and advance to the Europa League final next week.
On one hand, the second-place team facing the team that’s second from bottom is almost as lopsided of a matchup as it comes in Serie A this season.
Juventus vs. Cremonese match preview: Time, TV schedule, and how to watch the Serie A
On the other, you rewind your mind back four months to January — which seems a whole lot longer than just that long ago — and how the first meeting with Cremonese was far from something you would call a dominant effort.
For Juventus, it’s simple: don’t let up now. With Lazio dropping points — again! — on Friday night against Lecce and Inter claiming a win over Sassuolo 24 hours later, Juve has company in second place. So now it’s about fending off Inter rather than trying to get some breathing room between second and Lazio in third. Things are tight between second and fifth, and the only way that Juve can prevent some on-field craziness from happening — we all know off the field is a completely different matter entirely — is to just keep on winning. (Or, at the very least, matching what those trying to catch up can do.)
But when it comes to facing a team like Cremonese that is on the brink of relegation, it’s both about picking up three points at home and also preventing some sort of late-season disaster from happening. The first meeting between the two teams was a total slog in January, but now Juventus have the whole “potential Europa League hangover” to deal with.
No matter how much squad rotation happens — and that probably depends on which Italian media outlet you prefer to read — the goal is still the same. This is, thankfully, a light spot in the schedule in which Allegri can rotate and still very much be the favorite to win.
The vibes seem to be good after Federico Gatti’s last-second equalizer against Sevilla just a few days ago. There’s no reason to suddenly screw it all up because you drop points to the second-worst team in the league.
