With the miracle unable to be pulled off and Juventus no longer in the Champions League, there is now officially one thing and one thing only for Luciano Spalletti to worry about. That one general thing has many layers to it, but in the end there\u2019s just one actual objective for Juve to strive for with 12 games to go in the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
It\u2019s the same exact thing that we were saying at this point in the calendar last season, too. Only then, Juve went out and started the month of March about as poorly as you could have imagined and it cost the manager his job.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Maybe we can see a little bit better of a start to March this time around?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
While the manager\u2019s job and future at Juventus doesn\u2019t seem nearly as tenuous as things were 12 months ago, the fact that Spalletti\u2019s squad sits four points off fourth place and just so happening to be traveling to the stadium in which that club in front of them calls home this weekend is quite the fragile situation. Juventus, who have dropped to sixth with Como\u2019s win on Saturday, make the trip to the Italian capital this weekend to face fourth-place Roma and take advantage of one of the final remaining head-to-head matchups with somebody in front of them in the Serie A standings. It comes all of four days after the Bianconeri nearly pulled off a feat few have in the Champions League, but who knows what kind of cost it came out both on a physical, mental and emotional level.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Juventus could head back home to Turin late Sunday night within touching distance of Roma and down by all of a point. Or, if the worst-case scenario happens, Juve could head home with another loss to their record over the last four or so weeks since the start of February and trail Roma by seven points. (Napoli also won on Saturday, so it\u2019s not like there was any potential help on that front, either. Grazie, Hellas Verona.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
It\u2019s all very fragile and has the potential to get worse if something doesn\u2019t happen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
I truly have no idea how Juventus will bounce back from what happened against Galatasaray on Wednesday. That was an extreme amount of capital spent when it comes to energy spent and then mental anguish that comes with getting so close to flipping a 5-2 aggregate deficit in your favor only to then see it slip away in extra time. That is about as much of an emotional drain that you can experience over the course of what proved to be 120-plus minutes of game time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
And as we know about this Juventus squad, it\u2019s not like these are the kinds of situations in which they\u2019ve shown they can bounce back quickly from on a consistent basis over the last few years.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
But they will have to do it against Roma, the club that has only claimed two Serie A wins \u2014 over absolute giants by the name of Cagliari and Cremonese \u2014 since the middle of January. Even then, they\u2019ve been able to take advantage of both those in front of them not named Inter Milan and those behind them \u2014 namely Juventus \u2014 having a complete mixed bag of results (if not worse) that has enabled them to keep hold of their chances of making the top four and qualifying for the Champions League.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
They\u2019ve done it in the same way that made their first couple of months of the 2025-26 season so successful as Gian Piero Gasperini adjusted to life in Rome. They\u2019ve still got the best defense in Serie A and are the only team in Italy\u2019s top flight to allow fewer than 20 goals through the first 26 games. They\u2019re not also getting consistent production from January signing Donyell Malen \u2014 who arrived on loan from Aston Villa and is giving them something that their two big bruisers at the No. 9 spot, Artem Dovbyk and Evan Ferguson, couldn\u2019t provide.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
It\u2019s all added up to a team that is now looking a little more potent than they were about three months ago when Juventus claimed a 2-1 win over Roma at the Allianz Stadium.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Plus, Roma also have this going for them: While Juventus were expending all of that energy against Galatasaray midweek, they haven\u2019t in a week since the aforementioned win over Cremonese. So, as you can probably imagine, they\u2019re going to be a lot more fresh than the team that Spalletti throws out there.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Regardless of how fatigued physically and mentally Juventus may be, the importance of this one is obvious. If Juventus lose, then the uphill battle to qualify for the Champions League becomes that much steeper. But if they are able to get a win and pull within a point of Roma, then it\u2019s more than just a little interesting with 11 games to go in the season.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
We just have to see just how much is left in Juventus\u2019 tank. Which is something that Gasperini is surely curious about just as much as we are.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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- Spalletti didn\u2019t hold a pre-match press conference on Saturday, therefore we don\u2019t know about the status of any players coming off the Champions League decider against Galatasaray earlier in the week.<\/span><\/li>\n
- What we do know is that Juventus will be without captain Manuel Locatelli due to his yellow card against Como last weekend. (No comment on the actual merits of the foul that actually \u201cearned\u201d the yellow card.) Teun Koopmeiners is expected to take Locatelli\u2019s place in midfield.<\/span><\/li>\n
- After not playing against Como and then in the second leg against Galatasaray, Spalletti is expected to have Gleison Bremer back in the starting lineup for Sunday\u2019s game against Roma. That\u2019s a big deal and a much-needed boost for a squad that needs one.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Pierre Kalulu will also be available again after being suspended for last weekend\u2019s loss to Como due to his undeserved red card in the Derby d\u2019Italia.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Therefore, the only other players we know who will be out of action and unavailable against Roma are: Dusan Vlahovic, Emil Holm and (of course) Arek Milik. (Saturday was Milik\u2019s 32nd birthday, by the way.)<\/span><\/li>\n
- Mattia Perin is expected to retain his spot in goal for Juventus after starting Wednesday night\u2019s Champions League decider against Galatasaray in place of the struggling Michele Di Gregorio.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Weston McKennie is still one yellow card away from having to serve a one-game suspension.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n
\nWe know that Juventus\u2019 midfield is far from a stable unit. But there\u2019s also the fact that they will be without a player on Sunday that has been really, really good since Spalletti has taken over as maanger.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nDutch treat incoming? We can only hope that is the case against Roma.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nISTANBUL, TURKEY – FEBRUARY 17: Teun Koopmeiners of Juventus FC disappointed after the match during the UEFA Champions League match between Galatasaray v Juventus at the Turk Telekom Stadium on February 17, 2026 in Istanbul Turkey (Photo by Gerrit van Keulen\/Soccrates\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption>Getty Images<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \nThe anticipated move by Spalletti when it comes to filling the void left by Locatelli being suspended is going to be with Koopmeiners coming into the starting lineup. It comes at a time when Koopmeiners has done well in the last few appearances he\u2019s made, but the catch is that it comes with the context of Spalletti using the Dutch midifelder in a different kind of role as compared to how he\u2019s expected to be used against Roma.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nIn the two legs against Galatasaray, we got to see Koopmeiners in more of a role like we saw from him during his Atalanta days when he was one of the best midfielders in Serie A.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nBut on Sunday, Koopmeiners will likely be alongside Khephren Thuram in a double pivot.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nWhat to make of that initially is mixed. At this point, it\u2019s not like Koopmeiners has really excelled in any role with Juventus no matter who the coach has been. Maybe that\u2019s part of the problem considering he only had one manager at Atalanta and has already seen three full-time guys write his name into the lineup during his season and a half with Juve. It hasn\u2019t really matter where he\u2019s played in midfield, it\u2019s mostly been a struggle.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nSo, the overlying question is probably this: Can Koopmeiners do what Locatelli does in midfield?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nAt this point, who the heck knows. It\u2019s hard to say which Koopmeiners will show up on a game to game basis. Maybe he turns out to fill the void quite well. Maybe it will be more of the same from Koopmeiners \u2014 which isn\u2019t exactly an encouraging thing to think about in such an important game.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nAt least Spalletti doesn\u2019t have to overthink this one. Or maybe he will throw us a surprise. At this point, anything that gives Juventus a better chance of winning and getting three points is fine with me.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nWhen: <\/strong>Sunday, March 1, 2026.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nWhere:<\/strong> Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nOfficial kickoff time:<\/strong> 8:45 p.m. local time in Italy and across Europe, 7:45 p.m. in the United Kingdom, 2:45 p.m. Eastern time, 1:45 p.m. Central time, 11:45 a.m. Pacific time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nTelevision:<\/strong> TLN (Canada), TNT Sports 2 (United Kingdom).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nOnline\/Streaming:<\/strong> Paramount+<\/strong><\/a>, Amazon Prime USA, DAZN USA, fuboTV (United States); DAZN Canada; fuboTV Canada (Canada); DAZN UK (United Kingdom); DAZN Italy (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 Bluesky<\/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<\/div>\n
- What we do know is that Juventus will be without captain Manuel Locatelli due to his yellow card against Como last weekend. (No comment on the actual merits of the foul that actually \u201cearned\u201d the yellow card.) Teun Koopmeiners is expected to take Locatelli\u2019s place in midfield.<\/span><\/li>\n