Maybe it is because of the fact that Juventus played their last competitive game all of about six weeks ago, the fact that this summer has been extremely mellow compared to what we saw last year or just the simple matter of how expectations are nowhere near where they were for the previous manager, the Bianconeri starting their 2025-26 season this weekend does not have the same kind of gusto that is coming along with it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
This Sunday night, Juventus are taking to the Allianz Stadium field for their season opener against Parma.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
It\u2019s the start of a new season, but with how congested the footballing calendar has become, it\u2019s sometimes hard to not feel like one season ends and another one just rolls right up behind it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
But in a summer that has seen plenty of changes around Serie A \u2014 both in terms of managerial departures and arrivals as well as plenty of talent head out to the riches of the Premier League once again \u2014 Juventus\u2019 squad is \u2026 relatively the same. We know that Igor Tudor was confirmed as manager prior to Juve\u2019s participation in the Club World Cup. While we\u2019ve heard plenty of rumors about some of last summer\u2019s major pieces of business leaving, the only one to actually have left by the time things kick off against Parma has been Douglas Luiz, who joined Nottingham Forest earlier this week. Names that have been linked with potential exits \u2014 Nico Gonz\u00e1lez, Lloyd Kelly and, of course, Dusan Vlahovic \u2014 are still here with varying expectations of what their roles may be.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Yet, a new season is about to begin.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
And with it, it\u2019s still relatively hard to say what the ceiling is for this team \u2014 and not in the way in which they make you think they have an unlimited amount of potential because they\u2019ve got so much talent.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Is this a nonplussed kind of feeling about the new season? Yeah, kinda, I guess.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
I\u2019m certainly not as jazzed up for the start of this season as I was compared to when Thiago Motta strolled out of the tunnel at the Allianz in that fresh looking suit and proceeded to see his team stroll past Como in the 2024-25 opener. Tudor will be wearing a suit just like Motta was, but he\u2019s certainly not receiving the same kind of hype as the man he replaced back in March.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Maybe it\u2019s better that kind of way. We all remember the preseason hype surrounding Motta and then saw it crash out and go up in smoke all of nine months later. This summer has been more about what Juventus hasn\u2019t been able to do \u2014 offload its most expensive players, secure deals for the entirety of the small number of players linked to the club, namely Randal Kolo Muani \u2014 rather than even rivaling the incredibly hectic summer from 2024.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
We\u2019ll see if it pays off on Sunday night.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Juventus\u2019 opponent at the Allianz this weekend just so happen to be the same Parma side that took points off the Bianconeri in both of their meetings last season. However, this is a Parma that has a new coach \u2014 and one that, at 30 years old, is nearly a decade younger than the fella writing this point \u2014 and just sold arguably its biggest asset in Giovanni Leoni last week. The former Arsenal assistant \u2014 who just so happens to also have spent a short amount of time coaching in Juve\u2019s youth academy \u2014 made his official debut as manager last weekend when Parma beat Serie B side Pescara in the opening round of the Coppa Italia. (No, no more Zeman. Sorry, folks.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
We know that how Juve does in their season opener won\u2019t be indicative of how the rest of the campaign will go. There\u2019s no need to look anywhere other than last season for proof of that. But when it comes to Juventus having a very winnable game to try and establish some early-season momentum, you can\u2019t ask for much more than what they have on Sunday night.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Just as long as they avoid what they did against Parma last season, that is.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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- While Sunday night\u2019s fixture will not be his first game in charge of Juventus, it will mark the third time in as many years in which the Bianconeri will have somebody different managing their season opener.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Juventus do have some injuries of note even though it has been a relatively drama-free preseason on that front. The long-term injury list consists of Nicolo Savona (ankle injury suffered at the Club World Cup). Juan Cabal (ACL surgery in November) and Arek Milik (never-ending reasons for not playing).<\/span><\/li>\n
- Also on the injury list is backup goalkeeper Mattia Perin and midfielder Fabio Miretti. Perin could be back as early as next week against his former club Genoa, while Miretti \u2014 if he ends up staying at Juventus and not going out on loan somewhere \u2014 is expected to return at some point after the September international break.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Both of Juventus\u2019 new summer signings, Jonathan David and Joao Mario, are expected to be in the starting lineup against Parma. (We\u2019ll talk about one of these guys in a second or two.)<\/span><\/li>\n
- Just n case we needed final confirmation, Sunday night will indeed be Gleison Bremer\u2019s return to the Juventus starting lineup, his first official appearance since his ACL injury against RB Leipzig in October.<\/span><\/li>\n
- In case you\u2019re wondering, the referee for this one will be Matteo Marcenaro. Remember him? You should! He was the referee during the 2-2 draw with Salernitana in which we thought Juventus had one it super late but their game-winning goal was called offside even though Antonio Candreva was keeping everybody onside. Good times, right?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n
\nNew season. New striker up front. The highest-paid player in Serie A is still around, so that technically doesn\u2019t mean a new No. 9 just yet, but it\u2019s just a matter of time before that actually happens.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nSo, yeah. Let\u2019s talk about Canada. Or at least Juventus\u2019 new Canadian frontman.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nPhoto by Image Photo Agency\/Getty Images<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\nAs mentioned, Jonathan David is almost certain to start up top as Juventus\u2019 No. 9 in Tudor\u2019s 3-4-2-1 against Parma on Sunday night even though he won\u2019t be the club\u2019s official No. 9 jersey-wise this season. It\u2019s the position in which we\u2019ve all expected him to take over since the day he signed no matter what somebody like Vlahovic might be up to when the 2025-26 season began. (Hint: he\u2019s still here.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nSunday night will mark a long time coming for David, who had reportedly been interested in signing with Juventus for the better part of the past 12 months. He got his move done in early July, and now it\u2019s time to do exactly what he did in France \u2014 if not potentially more.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nAnd maybe get a decent amount of assists, too.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nWhen it comes to David, we\u2019ve already seen in small glimpses the impact he can have on a team\u2019s attack during the preseason friendlies he participated in. We\u2019ve seen the way he could develop something with Kenan Yildiz. We\u2019ve seen the ability to use his agility and mobility to his advantage so that he\u2019s also able to create chances for teammates rather than essentially being a one-trick pony and isolated up front. There just seems to be more possibilities for how Juve may be able to hurt teams in the final third now compared to a few months ago when Vlahovic was still getting big minutes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nWill he scored an overhead kick every time out like he did in Juve\u2019s final friendly against Atalanta last weekend? Of course not. But David\u2019s talent is obvious \u2014 and now he gets the chance to finally show it in Turin after so much waiting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nWhen: <\/strong>Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nWhere:<\/strong> Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nOfficial kickoff time:<\/strong> 8:45 p.m. in Italy and the Central European time zone, 7:45 p.m. in the United Kingdom, 2:45 p.m. Eastern time, 11:45 a.m. Pacific time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nTelevision:<\/strong> CBS Sports Network (United States); TLN (Canada); TNT Sports 1 (United Kingdom).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nOnline\/Streaming:<\/strong> Paramount+<\/strong><\/a>, DAZN USA, Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV (United States); DAZN Canada; fuboTV Canada; Amazon Prime Video; Fubo Sports Network Canada (Canada); DAZN UK (United Kingdom); DAZN Italia, Sky Go Italia (Italy).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nOther live viewing options can be found here<\/strong><\/a>, and as always, you can also follow along with us live and all the stupid things we say on Twitter<\/strong><\/a>. If you haven\u2019t already, join the community<\/strong><\/a> on Black & White & Read All Over, and join in the discussion below.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
0 Comments<\/span><\/div>\n
- Juventus do have some injuries of note even though it has been a relatively drama-free preseason on that front. The long-term injury list consists of Nicolo Savona (ankle injury suffered at the Club World Cup). Juan Cabal (ACL surgery in November) and Arek Milik (never-ending reasons for not playing).<\/span><\/li>\n