Serie A champions Juventus and Ligue 1 leaders Monaco meet at Stade Louis II on Wednesday for the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semi-finals clash. The two teams have met in the quarter-finals of the competition two years ago and Juventus pulled through after a 1-0 victory in Turin and a goalless draw at Monaco. Monaco have not beaten Juventus since 1998, when they recorded a futile 3-2 Champions League victory after having lost the first leg 4-1.
Monaco are having a great season, probably beyond the expectations of their most optimistic fans. They are leading the table in Ligue 1 with a three-point advantage over Paris Saint-Germain and a game in hand, while in the Champions League they knocked out big teams like Manchester City and Borussia Dortmund. They have lost just two of their last fifteen matches in all competitions, both defeats against Paris Saint-Germain and both in domestic cup competitions. Fabinho returns from suspension, but Djibril Sidibe and Almamy Toure will most likely miss out through injury.
Juventus continue their domination of Italian football, they are just one victory away from securing their sixth consecutive Serie A title after last weekend's 2-2 draw at Atalanta. They have lost just one of their last twenty two matches in all competitions and recorded just four draws in the process, an incredible streak that includes the historic 3-0 aggregate victory over Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-finals. Sami Khedira is suspended for this match and Claudio Marchisio will most likely take his place in midfield.
Probable line-ups:
Monaco: Subasic - Dirar, Jemerson, Glik, Mendy - B. Silva, Moutinho, Bakayoko, Lemar - Mbappe, Falcao
Juventus: Buffon - Alves, Bonucci, Chiellini, Sandro - Pjanic, Marchisio - Cuadrado, Dybala, Mandzukic - Higuain
My prediction: 1-1 draw.
Here are the odds for the match at Bet365:
Monaco win - 3.10
Draw - 3.40
Juventus win - 2.45
05/07/17, 07:05:59 PM
