Round 35: Juventus vs. Hellas Verona match preview

• Hellas Verona have only won one game since Christmas. That was on March 8 against … Bologna?!
• Since that win over Bologna, Hellas Verona have lost five of six games.
• Since that win over Bologna, Hellas Verona have only scored one goal in their last six games.
• Over their last six games, Hellas Verona have the worst record in Serie A. Juventus, meanwhile, have the best over the course of that same six-game span. So, yeah, after a tough three-game stretch in which Juventus got seven out of a possible nine points, this is about as soft of a landing as Spalletti probably could have hoped for. Juve aren’t facing a tough opponent in a resurgent Atalanta or Bologna. They won’t be facing a team that is tough to break down in the form of AC Milan. But even that performance against Milan is one that Spalletti wasn’t exactly thrilled with. ““We brought home a result, but didn’t make an impact, and that left me with bellyache the next day,” Spalletti quipped during his pre-match press conference. “I told the team that, too.” Juventus will take the field on Sunday knowing that Como played to a scoreless draw against Antonio Conte and Napoli and could very well go five points clear of the team that’s currently closest to them in the standings in fifth. They will also know that Roma still has to play come Monday night against a relatively safe Fiorentina at the Stadio Olimpico. Of the three teams in contention for fourth place who are entered the weekend separated by all of three points, Juventus are the ones who are still in the driver’s seat and can control their own destiny. They got more help on Saturday, and can take full advantage of it with a win over Hellas Verona. Even if Roma beat Fiorentina and subsequently overtake Como to move into fifth place, they will still need plenty of help in the final three games to jump over Juventus. That is, of course, if Juventus take care of business this weekend and continue to get closer to wrapping up a spot in the Champions League next season. “You finish fourth if you deserve to finish fourth,” Spalletti said. “We’ve maintained our standards and you shouldn’t focus on the maths, but on the day-to-day performances. We’re doing well, and we know what we’ve been through to be in this fight for fourth. We need to think about the Champions League, not fourth place. If you think about the former, you behave like a team that has something to prove. “The Champions League rewards those who create chaos, not those who avoid it.” We can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but things are far from a certainty just yet. Maybe we will feel differently about all of it in a couple of weeks, but for now Juventus need to do what they’ve done a majority of the time coming out of the March international break — win and keep trying to pull away from Como and Roma.

TEAM NEWS

• Spalletti actually held a press conference this weekend. How about that?!?!
• We were again presented with a week in which Kenan Yildiz did not train with the rest of the team all that often. Yildiz partially trained with the group on Wednesday, but has since returned to training with the rest of the group in full all of two days later. This could very well mean he’s coming off the bench again, but at least it’s not a situation like the last couple of weeks where he’s just getting in one full training session before Juventus actually play.
• When it comes to Yildiz, Spalletti said “Kenan’s done well in the last few training sessions and doesn’t feel any pain.”
• It’s been the same kind of deal when it comes to Khephren Thuram, who has been back in full training for a couple of days after being away from the rest of the group earlier in the week. Like Yildiz, it’s hard to know just how health Thuram is these days, but it’s pretty clear that he isn’t 100%.
• Dusan Vlahovic, like Yildiz, was the other big name to return to full training with the rest of the group on Friday. He will likely be an option off the bench this weekend just as he was against Milan seven days ago.
• The only two players who are out injured are Juan Cabal and Arek Milik. Both players are not expected to return this season.
• Jonathan David is expected to retain his spot in the starting lineup even though Spalletti said that Vlahovic is available (but ultimately still limited in terms of minutes he can play).
• Just as the case as the last couple of weeks, both Gleison Bremer and Lloyd Kelly are one yellow card away from having to serve a one-game suspension.

JUVENTUS PLAYER TO WATCH

You’re playing one of the worst teams in the league with one of the worst defenses. You’re trying not to make things super interesting and letting a team that just got officially relegated hang around for very long. What’s important? Goals. Specifically, scoring goals to get a lead. Or at least contributing to your team finding the back of the net.

MATCH INFO

**When:**Sunday, May 3, 2026. **Where:** Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy. **Official kickoff time:** 6 p.m. local time in Italy and across Europe, 5 p.m. in the United Kingdom, 12 p.m. Eastern time, 1:.m. Central time, 11:45 a.m. Pacific time.

HOW TO WATCH

**Television:** Fox Deportes (United States); TLN (Canada); TNT Sports 1 (United Kingdom); Sky Sport Calcio, Sky Sport 251 (Italy). **Online/Streaming:** **Paramount+**, Amazon Prime USA, DAZN USA, fuboTV, Fox One, Fox Sports app, FoxSports.com (United States); DAZN Canada; fuboTV Canada (Canada); DAZN UK (United Kingdom); DAZN Italy, Sky Go Italia, NOW TV (Italy). Other live viewing options can be found **here**, and as always, you can also follow along with us live and all the stupid things we say **on Bluesky**. If you haven’t already, **join the community** on Black & White & Read All Over, and join in the discussion below.