The lowdown on Juventus FC
The FC Barcelona men (9.30pm CEST) and women (6.00pm CEST) will both be taking on Juventus is the first ever back-to-back Joan Gamper Trophy. Let’s take a closer look at the club they will both be playing: Juventus of Italy.
(Scroll down for information about the women’s team)
History
Founded in 1897 by Turin students, Juventus (meaning ‘youth’) have won more Serie A titles (36) than any other club. They are also by far the most widely supported team in Italy, with swathes of fans not just in the Piedmont region but all around the country.
The club has had more different Ballon d’Or winners (8) than any other (John Charles, Omar Sívori, Dino Zoff, Paolo Rossi, Michel Platini, Roberto Baggio, Zinedine Zidane and Pavel Nedved), but perhaps rather surprisingly has only been champion of Europe on two occasions: in 1985 (against Liverpool on the night of the tragedy at Heysel) and in 1996 (on penalties against Ajax).
Extraordinarily, Juve have reached seven other finals and lost all of them (a record), the most recent being in 2015 (against FC Barcelona) and 2017 (against Real Madrid).
No side has ever dominated Italian football in quite the same way as ‘The Old Lady of Turin’ have done in the last decade, but their incredible run of nine Scudettos in a row was finally broken last season by Inter Milan.
Head to head
Barça and Juventus know all about each other, and in 15 previous meetings in European competition the record is five wins for Barça, six for the Italians and four draws. The most memorable of those games was obviously the Champions League Final in 2015, which Barça won 3-1 in Berlin. Juve got their revenge two years later by winning in the quarter finals. The teams also crossed paths in 2017 and 2018.
1970/71 UEFA Cup Second Round
Juventus won 4-2 on aggregate
1985/86 European Cup Quarter Final
Barça won 2-1 on aggregate
1990/91 Cup Winners' Cup Semi Final
Barça won 3-2 on aggregate
2002/03 Champions League Quarter Final
Juventus won 3-2 on aggregate
2014/15 Champions League Final
Barça won 3-1
2016/17 Champions League Quarter Final
Juventus won 3-0 on aggregate
2017/18 Champions League Group Stage
Barça 3-0 Juventus / Juventus 0-0 Barça
2020/21 Champions League Group Stage
Juventus 0-2 Barça / Barça 0-3 Juventus
Juventus are appearing as Joan Gamper guests for the second time. They also played in 2005, winning on penalties following a 2-2 draw. That means that in 2021 they have the chance to become only the second team (other than FC Barcelona of course) to win the title twice. FC Köln of Germany won in 1978 and 1981.
Form guide
Last season was an uncharacteristically poor one for Juve, who only finished fourth in the league and exited the Champions League at the round of 16 stage at hands of Porto. They did however win the Italian Cup.
Other than changes in the status of loan players, so far there have been no major changes to the squad for the new season.
Following victories against lower league sides Cesena and Monza, the Joan Gamper is the first real test for Juventus this preseason.
Players
Most international caps: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal, 179), Giorgio Chiellini (Italy, 112), Leonardo Bonucci (Italy, 109), Juan Cuadrado (Colombia, 101), Aaron Ramsey (Wales, 67), Wojciech Szczęsny (Poland, 55), Álvaro Morata (Spain, 46), Mattia De Sciglio (Italy, 39), Danilo (Brazil, 38), Rodrigo Bentancur (Uruguay, 38), Federico Bernardeschi (Italy, 34), Federico Chiesa (Italy, 32), Matthijs de Ligt (Holland, 30), Paulo Dybala (Argentina, 29), Alex Sandro (Brazil, 28), Weston McKennie (USA, 24), Merih Demiral (Turkey, 24), Arthur Melo (Brazil (21)
Top scorers 2020/21: Cristiano Ronaldo (36), Alvaro Morata (20), Federico Chiesa (14)
* Chiellini, Chiesa, Bonucci and Bernardeschi were all part of the Italian squad that recently won Euro 2020.
The boss
Massimiliano Allegri may have only played for relatively minor clubs in Serie A but has gone to gain a reputation as one of the finest coaches in the country, first getting noticed by guiding Sassuolo into the top flight for the first time ever. After winning the league with AC Milan, he moved to Juventus where he has become the only manager to win five consecutive Serie A titles and the only one in Europe’s top five leagues to win four domestic league and cup doubles in a row.
Juventus Women
The women’s team was founded in 2017 following the acquisition of Cuneo Calcio Femminile and in four participations have won Serie A every time, last season doing so by winning every single game.
In Europe, however, they have never progressed beyond the round of 32 of the Champions League.
Barça women met Juventus in the round of 32 of the Champions League in 2019/20. Barça won 2-0 away with goals from Putellas and Torrejón, and then 2-1 at the Johan Cruyff (Putellas and an own goal).
Following wins against Birkirkara (Malta), Servette (Switzerland) and Montpellier (France), this game is a crucial part of the team’s warm-up for a Champions League qualifier against Kamenica Sasa of North Macedonia on August 18.
Most international caps: Sara Gama (Italy, 126), Linda Sembrant (Sweden, 126), Tuija Hyyrynen (Finland, 112), Cristiana Girelli (Italy, 77), Barbara Bonansea (Italy, 69), Sofie Junge Pedersen (Denmark, 62), Martina Rosucci (Italy, 62), Valentina Cernoia (Italy, 61)
Top scorers 2020/21: Cristiana Girelli (26), Barbara Bonansea (13), Andrea Stašková (12)