Juventus put in a defensive masterclass last season as they knocked Barcelona out of the Champions League thanks to a very impressive 3-0 aggregate win, although the Turin outfit eventually lost the final to Real Madrid. A lot has changed since that clash though.

Barcelona have seen the biggest change, with one of their star trio of attackers, Neymar, departing for a world record transfer fee. Meanwhile, the Catalan giants have brought in Ousmane Dembele for almost £100 million and increased their squad depth with Paulinho, Nelson Semedo, and Gerard Deulofeu.

So far the departure of Neymar hasn’t impacted Barcelona too much. They battered cross-city rivals Espanyol 5-0 on Saturday to make it three wins from three in La Liga, which is a vast improvement on their 5-1 aggregate defeat to Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup. They have now scored nine goals and conceded none in their three league matches.

Once again it’s Lionel Messi stealing the show though. The Argentine magician scored a hat-trick against Espanyol, to take his tally to five goals in three games. He scored a ridiculous 48 goals last season, and 11 of those came in just nine Champions League appearances. Eight of them in five home appearances in the Champions League means he is by far the best choice for our anytime goalscorer predictions.

Juventus made a name for themselves by being incredibly tough to break down last season in the Champions League, even managing to keep the free scoring Monaco limited to one goal over two legs. Their 4-1 thrashing in the final has broken that defensive spell though, and whilst they are still a very tough side, things have changed at the back.

The biggest change has been the shock sale of Leonardo Bonucci, and with Giorgio Chiellini out injured, they could be vulnerable to Barcelona this time round. They have won all three of their Serie A games so far, but they were tested in their first trip away and needed to come back from a 2-0 deficit against Genoa.

Now they face a much tougher test in the in form Barcelona, and considering the hosts have won 15 and drawn one of their last 16 home games in the Champions League, odds for them to get another win look good value for money.
Head To Head

Barcelona and Juventus have each won two, drawn two, and lost two of their six previous meetings.
Barcelona vs Juventus Stats
Barcelona have won 94% of their last 16 home games in the Champions League and haven’t failed to win a home group match since 2012. Lionel Messi has averaged a goal every 1.08 games in his last four seasons in the Champions League.

Barcelona Team News
Midfield trio Sergi Roberto, Arda Turan, and Rafinha are expected to miss out for the hosts

Juventus Team News
Defender Giorgio Chiellini and midfield trio Sami Khedira, Claudio Marchisio, and Marko Pjaca are all injured.

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