Juventus v Fulham
Football : UEFA : Europa League
Thursday, 11th March 2010 - Kickoff 20:05

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Juventus

Juventus came through their last 32 tie with Ajax and will be the overwhelming favourites to go through again. However, it must be remembered that Juventus are not the same side as they were a few seasons ago and they have struggled this season after an early Champions League failure.

The Turin giants are 5th in Serie A, 2 points behind Palermo in their quest to gain a Champions League place again. They are 6-3-5 at home this season where they have scored 21 goals but conceded 19. Only the bottom 3 sides in Serie A have lost more games on their own turf this season. Juventus have also struggled here in European games this season, compiling a 1-2-1 record and failing to score more than 1 goal in any of those games.

Juventus have only lost 1 of their last 7 games in all competitions and they have won 4 of their last 6. Juventus have been struggling at home, winning only 1 of their last 5 there and failing to score in the last 2.

Fulham

Roy Hodgeson has produced miracles in transforming Fulham. He took over a side that looked certain to get relegated back in 2008 and moved them into one of the toughest sides to beat in England and now in Europe. They should be full of confidence after beating the reigning Europa League winners, Shakhtar Donetsk, in the last round.

Fulham are currently 10th in the Premier League and are very unlikely to return to European competition through their European places. They have a 1-6-7 record away from home where they have scored 11 goals and conceded 20. They are 2-2-2 away from home in Europe and were close to getting a result in Italy when losing 2-1 in Roma earlier in the competition.

The Cottagers are unbeaten in their last 9 matches in all competitions but most of those took place at Craven Cottage. Fulham have been unbeaten in their last 3 away games in all competitions, but have failed to win any of those matches too, scoring only 1 goal and conceding just 1 in the 3 matches. They should have gained a lot of positives after securing a 1-1 draw at Shakhtar Donetsk in the last round.

Danny Murphy is suspended after being sent off in the Ukraine.

Head to Head

These 2 sides have never met in competition.

Juventus have not beaten an English side in their last 4 matches at home.

Fulham have only played in Italy twice, losing at Roma this season and drawing with Bologna back in 2002.

Prediction

Juventus have had a turbulent season and the team is yet to gel fully. They have really struggled at home recently and in Europe all season so this is going to be far from easy. There is also a temptation to think that they may be more focused on domestic matters and securing a Champions League spot rather than a long Europa League run.

Fulham have proven hard to beat all season as they were last season, but they also play good football. They have one of the stars of the season in Bobby Zamora, but focus on defending well when playing away from home. Fulham also know their best success this season will come in one of the cup competitions and I am sure Roy Hodgeson is going to be relishing this clash with a big name Italian side.

I was going to favour a draw and was also very tempted in going for Under 1.5 goals in this game. However, I am going to play what I feel is the safest option and pick Fulham on the Asian Handicap.

The Pick :

Juventus 0-0 Fulham

HANDICAP BETTING :

Take Fulham +1 Asian Handicap