09 July 2021
Above you can see Bonucci against Rashford in Manchester United-Juventus in the 2018-19 Champions League.
This is one of the possible duels that is set to take place on Sunday evening at Wembley in the final between Italy and England. As such, it has inspired us to look back at some of the memories where Southgate's players competed againts our Juventus team.
KIERAN TRIPPIER
He has not always featured as a starter in this European Championship because competition in the England squad is strong. For Kieran Trippier, confronting Juventus was so habitual that he did it with two different shirts: Tottenham's first and then Atletico Madrid's. The tradition in the Champions League has been unfavorable to him, with two defeats in three matches. The photo above instead refers to a duel with Cristiano Ronaldo in Stockholm, when the Spaniards won 2-1 in the International Champions Cup.
JOHN STONES
Having featured in every game for England, with an impressive figure of only two fouls committed in six matches, Manchester City's central defender John Stones crossed paths with Juventus on 31 July 2013, when he was playing for Everton. In the photo you can see him in the background, at the height of the ball. This fixture took place on the occasion of the International Champions Cup, which was played in San Francisco. The match ended 1-1 and the young Englishman, 19 at the time, was tasked with executing a penalty, which he scored. The Azzurri have been warned...
LUKE SHAW
Luke Shaw faced Juventus in the 2018-19 Champions League. Here we see him engaged at Old Trafford against Dybala, who provided the match-winning goal. The return leg proved to be better for the Red Devils, who came out victorious at the Allianz Stadium. Italy will have to pay attention not only to Shaw's runs: even when standing still he has a lethal left foot, the match winning deflection on Maguire against Ukraine came from his free-kick.
RAHEEM STERLING
Sterling has lit up every European match he has played in, providing a sence of threat against the opposition. Sometimes he even dominated his opponents, for example: his performance against the Czech Republic saw him first he hit a post, before then scoring. He wasn't the same, however, when he faced Juve in the 2015-16 Champions League, where he lost on both occasions, also thanks to the Juventus defence. At home, he had a great opportunity to take the lead but Buffon told him no. Upon the return leg in Turin, he took the place of Aguero (pictured above) and that time, it was Barzagli who prevented him from leaving a mark on the match.
HARRY KANE
Pictured above you can see Giorgio Chiellini and Harry Kane in the Allianz Stadium tunnel, before the first leg between Juventus and Tottenham in the 2017-18 Champions League. The British striker's value has only further been proven with his four goals in this year's EURO. His scoring prowess was also witnessed by our Juventus players, because in the four matches - which included two summer tests - he scored on four occasions. But in the most important circumstance, the match that decided the next round, Kane couldn't find the back of the net. On that occasion, too, they played at Wembley...
