Is Juventus about to run away with the Serie A title … again?
That’s what fans of Italian soccer are wondering ahead of the 2017-18 season, which will kick off Aug. 19 and run through May 20. Juventus scaled the Italian-league summit in 2012 and has remained there ever since, winning an a record six consecutive titles and even reaching the UEFA Champions League final twice in the last three seasons.
But Juventus has changed this offseason, with the departures of defensive linchpin Leonardo Bonucci, star fullback Dani Alves and winger Kingsley Coman and arrivals of Federico Bernardeschi, Wojciech Szczesny, Mattia De Sciglio, Rodrigo Bentancur and Douglas Costa signaling a march toward a new era under the steady guidance of manager Massimiliano Allegri.
AS Roma finished second in Serie A last season, four points behind Juventus. The Romans remain keen to contend for the league title and impress in the Champions League this season but will do so under a new direction: that of newly appointed head coach Eusebio Di Francesco and sporting director Monchi, who sold starters Mohamed Salah, Antonio Rüdiger and Leandro Paredes and bought Rick Karsdorp, Cengiz Under, Bruno Peres, Lorenzo Pellegrini, Juan Jesus, Mario Rui, Hector Moreno, Maxime Gonalons and Aleksandar Kolarov. Time will tell if Roma will reap the rewards of its new strategy.
Juventus and Roma will meet at 4 p.m. ET on Sunday at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass., in a 2017 International Champions Cup game. Fans should expect to see the teams work to integrate their new players and continue preparing for the upcoming season in front of a sizable crowd of local, U.S.-based and other visiting soccer fans.
NESN.com’s Marcus Kwesi O’Mard and Marc DiBenedetto discussed how Roma stacks up against Juventus on this week’s episode of the NESN Soccer Show, offering insights into the upcoming season and potential title race. You can watch the segment in the above video.
You also can watch the full show here.
Thumbnail photo via YouTube/Serie A TIM
