A tight and cagey affair at the Bentegodi sees both Hellas Verona and Juventus enter the half-time interval level at 0-0. There haven't been too many clear cut chances for either side, with Faraoni’s near post reverse-header the closest either team came to breaking the deadlock. Juve have ceded much of the ball to their opponents, favouring to hit on the counter-attack whenever possible; though Ronaldo has been kept very quiet. It’s all still to play for, with both Hellas and Juve more than capable of winning all three points from this position.
45' + 1' HALF-TIME: HELLAS VERONA 0-0 JUVENTUS.
43' Faraoni puts a cross into the penalty area after working some space - but sends his effort into the side netting after almost catching the keeper napping at his near post. It’s a goal-kick for the visitors - but another warning sign.
41' Bernardeschi’s corner from the left sails over the head of De Ligt and rolls out of the penalty area for Kulusevski to recollect and start again.
39' Demiral plays a poor ball in midfield, giving it right to Verona. A pass is played through De Ligt and Bentancur for Lasagna, but Szczesny is off his line to make the save at the foot of the keeper.
37' Juventus have kept a clean sheet in four of their last five league games, as many as in their previous 27 – no side has kept more than Juventus in this period in Serie A (level with Inter).
35' The free-kick is swung in by Barak, where it’s met at the edge of the 18 by the head of Faraoni. It’s sent to the far post, but without a team-mate in the vicinity it’s allowed to roll behind for a goal-kick.
32' Juventus are given a free-kick in the immediate aftermath of Verona’s set-piece after Lasagna is called for digging an elbow into the side of De Ligt. It looks a painful one for the centre-back, but the referee keeps his cards in his pocket.
30' The match is rising in intensity as a number of off-the-ball fouls have been called in recent moments - the most recent of which sees Ramsey booked for a push in midfield. The former Arsenal man needs to be careful, as he’s already on a booking.
28' Chiesa goes through the back of Zaccagni after a turnover in possession following a throw-in, allowing Hellas Verona to once again reorganise inside Juve’s half.
26' Ronaldo gets onto the ball just ahead of the 18-yard box and steps past not one but two defenders before firing a left-footed effort that sails high and wide of the target.
24' Juventus are being made to work very hard to clear their own half as Verona press high up the pitch. They’re given a little bit of respite this time however, as Sturaro is called for a foul on Rabiot.
22' Verona have won four points in their last two matches against Juventus in Serie A (W1 D1), having lost each of their previous three encounters; they could go unbeaten in three consecutive games in Serie A against the Bianconeri for the first time since the 80s (4 games: W2 D2).
20' Verona are enjoying a good spell of possession, but they’re being kept in midfield as Juventus close the space well ahead of their own 18-yard box. The hosts have been promising in the opening 20 minutes, giving Juventus some real trouble.
15' Good play from Juventus through Kulusevski, who takes on and beats a couple defenders on the right wing before cutting inside and squaring a pass to the edge of the 18 for Rabiot - whose first-time effort skews harmlessly away from goal.
13' Danger for Juventus as Dimarco is allowed to Szczesny’s penalty area and whip a pacey cross to the far post in search of Barak, who is a half-step behind the delivery.
11' The set-piece is hoisted into the penalty area in search of Barak, but three Juventus defenders converge to get a necessary clearing touch.
10' Lasagna gets to a loose ball first in midfield, forcing De Ligt into an awkward sliding challenge that brings the striker down. It’s not a booking for the defender, but Verona are given a free-kick in a dangerous area.
8' SZCZESNY GETS A CRUCIAL TOUCH! Verona take their first corner-kick short, before working a cross to the near post. Faraoni gets to it first to nod it back towards the target - forcing the goalkeeper to push the ball up off the crossbar and out!
6' Juventus’ attempt at a short corner ends in a Verona free-kick as Demiral drags back a defender in an attempt to get to Ramsey’s poor cross.
4' Juventus hoist a free-kick from midfield into the Verona penalty area, but De Ligt fails to catch his volley cleanly - sending it comfortably towards the goalkeeper.
2' A mishit clearance from Silvestri allows Ramsey through into the penalty area, but his low shot to the near post is pushed behind by the goalkeeper.
1' Hellas Verona get the match underway from the kick-off!
A change of formation sees three changes for Juventus from the side that thrashed Crotone 3-0 last time out. Szczesny returns between the posts replacing Buffon, while Bernardeschi replaces the suspended Danilo. Midfield also sees a change, as McKennie is dropped to the bench in favour of Rabiot.
Hellas Verona make two changes from their 2-2 draw with Genoa last week. Lazovic makes way for Dimarco on the left wing, while former Juventus midfielder Sturaro gets the nod ahead of Tameze.
JUVENTUS SUBS: Alessandro Di Pardo, Hamza Rafia, Nicolo Fagioli, Gianluigi Buffon, Riccardo Capellini, Weston McKennie, Gianluca Frabotta, Daouda Peeters, Radu Dragusin, Carlo Pinsoglio, Alejandro Marques, Marley Ake.
JUVENTUS XI (3-5-2): Wojciech Szczesny; Alex Sandro, Matthijs De Ligt, Merih Demiral; Federico Bernardeschi, Aaron Ramsey, Adrien Rabiot, Rodrigo Bentancur, Federico Chiesa; Cristiano Ronaldo, Dejan Kulusevski.
HELLAS VERONA SUBS: Alessandro Berardi, Adrien Tameze, Ronaldo Viera, Andrea Favilli, Daniel Bessa, Miguel Veloso, Pawel Dawidowicz, Federico Ceccherini, Iyenoma Destiny Udogie, Eddie Salcedo, Ivor Pandur, Darko Lazovic.
HELLAS VERONA XI (3-4-2-1): Marco Silvestri; Matteo Lovato, Koray Gunter, Giangiacomo Magnani; Federico Dimarco, Ivan Ilic, Stefano Sturaro, Marco Faraoni; Mattia Zaccagni, Antonin Barak; Kevin Lasagna.
With 15 minutes to go before kick-off, let's take a look at how the two sides are lining up - starting with our hosts!
Juventus take to the pitch looking to put real pressure on the Milanese sides - both of whom play tomorrow. Currently eight points back of pace-setters Inter, Andrea Pirlo will have no doubts that the Bianconeri can continue to cut the points deficit in search of their 10th straight Scudetto - though they’ll have to manage today without a raft of attacking options including both Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata, who are sidelined.
Verona could add to their already impressive season with a scalp against incumbent champions Juventus, a win that would take them - at least temporarily - above Sassuolo and into eighth place. Ivan Juric has his side on a run of two matches without defeat after sustaining back-to-back losses against Roma and Udinese; the first time they had lost twice in succession all season.
Hello and welcome to our LIVE commentary of the Serie A fixture between Hellas Verona and Juventus!
