With just one win from their last four games, Juventus will try to keep the critics at bay by beating Lecce on Sunday evening.

Before they clash at Stadio Via del Mare, the Salentini only trail Juve by two points in Serie A, after posting a big away win last weekend.

Match preview

Aiming to extend their strong start in this season's Europa League, Juventus welcomed free-scoring French side Rennes to Italy on Thursday evening.

In contrast to their dire domestic form, Juve had a perfect European record following victories over NEC and Celta Vigo, but they were forced to fight back just to earn one point in Turin. 

The visitors struck twice between Nick Woltemade setting up Zeki Celik's opener and levelling from the spot, before Weston McKennie saw a late 'winner' ruled out for offside.

Still well placed in UEFA's second-tier competition, the same cannot be said of Juve's domestic ranking, as they dropped down to eighth place after last week's 3-0 loss against Lazio.

Woltemade and Randal Kolo Muani both missed a golden chance as Luciano Spalletti's side crumbled in front of their own fans, and they have now won just one of their last five league games.

With Spalletti's position apparently under threat, a modest tally of 11 points leaves them trailing Serie A's other top-four contenders - and they only sit two above Lecce.

Since the 2004-05 campaign, Lecce have won just one of 20 top-flight meetings with Juventus, and that lone success dates back to February 2011.

When the pair met at Via del Mare in May, they were undone by a first-minute goal and ultimately lost 1-0, but that did not stop them surviving the drop.

Now appearing in Serie A for a club-record fifth consecutive season, the Salentini eventually scrambled over the line, and they could face a similar fight this term.

Lecce had only claimed six points from their first six matches - and were dumped out of the Coppa Italia by ambitious Serie B side Palermo - before stunning Udinese last week.

Scoring two headed goals from corners helped Eusebio Di Francesco's men claim an impressive 3-0 victory in Udine, where a fine strike from Jamil Siebert put some extra icing on the cake.

Lecce Serie A form:

Juventus Serie A form:

Juventus form (all competitions):

Team News

Although proven options are limited by injury, Spalletti is set to rotate his squad again, amid a frantic run of fixtures until the next international break.

After scoring the opening goal in midweek, Celik strained his left thigh, while Nico Gonzalez came off with a calf problem; both will follow Francisco Conceicao, Kenan Yildiz, Khephren Thuram, Jeff Ekhator, Kamil Grabara and captain Manuel Locatelli into Juve's packed treatment room.

Despite struggling in Serie A, Woltemade has just joined Roberto Baggio and Darko Kovacevic as the only men to score in all of their first three European appearances for the Bianconeri. 

It remains to be seen whether the German forward partners Kolo Muani, after the pair finally started together against Rennes.

Lecce are also searching for the right recipe up front, as misfiring strikers William Geubbels, Nikola Stulic and Paco Esteban have yet to score a league goal between them this term.

The hosts' absence list may be shorter than Juve's, but Lassana Coulibaly and Santiago Pierotti both sustained injuries last week.

Furthermore, Ivan Ilic and Medon Berisha will still be missing, with the latter struggling to overcome a thigh problem.

Lecce possible starting lineup:

Falcone; Veiga, Gabriel, Gaspar, Gallo; Kaba, Ngom, Maleh; N'Dri, Geubbels, Monteiro

Juventus possible starting lineup:

Vicario; Kalulu, Bremer, Lucumi; McKennie, Luiz, Sarr, Cambiaso; Alajbegovic; Kolo Muani, Woltemade

We say: Lecce 0-1 Juventus

Juventus must deal with fatigue, faltering form and a long injury list, so picking up three points in Lecce is far from a foregone conclusion.

In the absence of a functional strikeforce, the hosts have largely relied on set pieces, but their limitations will be exposed against better opposition.

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