Douglas Luiz is set to return to the Juventus midfield as the Bianconeri take on Standard Liege in a pre-season friendly in Belgium this Saturday evening. The match, scheduled for 19:00 BST, serves as an important test during the early stages of the summer schedule.
Coach Luciano Spalletti is currently managing a depleted squad, as a core group of key players have yet to return to full fitness or are still on holiday. As a result, notable names such as Gleison Bremer, Khephren Thuram, Kenan Yildiz, Francisco Conceicao, and Jonathan David are unavailable for the encounter. Reports suggest that Spalletti has expressed frustration regarding the limited number of starters currently at his disposal, noting that he has only had a handful of first-team regulars available during this phase of preparation.
Juventus will line up in a 3-4-2-1 formation for the match. Despite being the only senior centre-forward in the squad, Openda has not been included in the starting eleven. Instead, the coaching staff has opted to start 18-year-old Arman Durmisi up front. He will be supported by Vasilije Adzic and Jeremie Boga in the attacking line, while Douglas Luiz and Manuel Locatelli anchor the midfield. The wing-back positions will be occupied by Andrea Cambiaso and youngster Adin Licina, with an established back three of Pierre Kalulu, Federico Gatti, and Lloyd Kelly.
The Standard Liege starting line-up features Epolo in goal, with a defensive unit of Mortensen, Hautekiet, Karamoko, Drammeh, and Fossey. The midfield consists of Ilaimaharitra, Trouillet, and Nielsen, while Abid and Nkada lead the attack. Juventus will have substitutes including Perin, Celik, Openda, Miretti, Pinsoglio, Rugani, J.Mario, Arthur, Cabal, Owusu, Gil Puche, Oboavwoduo, and Elimoghale available on the bench.
The Old Lady will be taking on Standard Liege at 19.00 BST this evening.
Subs: Pirard, Dierckx, Kokora, Sy, Lawrence, Spoden, Mohr, Touzghar, El Hankouri, Nguene, Ayensa, Mitongo.
