Juventus - Bologna

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Two sides with contrasting starts to the season meet on Wednesday, as confident Juventus welcome struggling Bologna to their new stadium.

Juve recorded a second win of the season at the weekend to top the table with a 100 per cent record. Encouragingly, the victory at Siena came despite a drop in performance, a factor former general manager Luciano Moggi was quick to point out could be significant.

Confidence is high, but tellingly, Antonio Conte and a number of players are cautious in their words to the Press, choosing to suggest it is premature to get carried away at this early stage. Indeed, two seasons ago the team won their opening four games, conceding just one goal, before finishing the campaign disparately in seventh.

Bologna may arrive low on confidence, but they represent a marker of progress for Conte’s side, and a further opportunity to reassert their re-emerging status. For one thing, the Emilia-Romagna outfit inflicted one of the Bianconeri’s five home defeats last season.

The Rossoblu, however, are unlikely to offer as much opposition as they did in February, arriving in midweek off the back of a desperate start to the season under new Coach Pierpaolo Bisoli.

Goalless and pointless, defeats to Fiorentina and Lecce could prove more significant than they already seem, with the Rossoblu facing Inter and Udinese immediately after Juventus, presenting a very real possibility of a truly disastrous opening month. Bisoli admitted the team deserved the jeers that greeted them at the final whistle of the Lecce defeat and worryingly pointed to a lack of reaction from his players as a fundamental contribution.

President Albano Guaraldi has come out in support of his Coach, but suggested that where the difficulty of the forthcoming opponents may skew results, that the club needs to see a change in attitude on the pitch.

Keep an eye on: Milos Krasic (Juventus) – The zippy Serb has barely featured so far this season and reports are increasing of problems with Conte. This midweek round is his opportunity to prove himself, although Manchester United are waiting in case Krasic opts to move on.

Form Guide: Juventus (W W - - -) Bologna (L L - - -)

Last season: Juventus 0-2 Bologna

Stat fact: Stretching back to last season, the Felsinei have not won any of their last 11 games and even failed to score in nine of those.