The 34th Italian Super Cup. For Juventus, a 17th appearance in what is the first trophy up for grabs of the Italian season.
January 20th, 2020, the Bianconeri raised the NSupercoppa Italiana to the skies over Reggio Emilia after defeating Napoli 2-0. Second-half goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Alvaro Morata rewarded the Bianonceri with their ninth Super Cup triumph.
No other club gets near the Old Lady either in terms of appearances or victories in this tournament. Opponents Inter have won it just five times, but they do go into the San Siro showdown as favourites.
The Bianconeri’s six-match unbeaten run in Serie A is second only to Inter’s 12. However, with only one defeat in 16 games in all competitions, the Nerazzurri’s positive form runs deep.
Yet Juventus are unbeaten in 11 of their last 12 meetings with their old rivals, winning seven. In Milan, honours are even, with three wins each and three draws over the last nine encounters.
More recently, both teams come into the Super Cup on the back of victories over Roman clubs. Inter saw off Lazio 2-1 in Milan, while Juventus stunned Roma in seven-minutes of madness at the Olimpico.
The benefits from that incredible comeback over the Giallorossi in terms of self-confidence and enthusiasm are inestimable, but it didn’t come cheap.
Compared to the loss of Federico Chiesa for the remainder of the season, the suspension of Juan Cuadrado and Matthijs De Ligt for the Super Cup loses some, but not all, significance.