Juventus will win their fourth consecutive Serie A title if they earn at least a point against Sampdoria on Saturday evening.
The Bianconeri have once again shown their dominance in Italy this season, but their opponents are also looking for vital points in their bid for a European spot.
Sampdoria
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It has been a torrid month for Sampdoria, who have seen their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League all but ended and have also lost their grip on securing a Champions League spot.
They had enjoyed a fine spell in March and had won all four of their league matches, including memorable victories over heavyweights Roma and Inter Milan.
Their good form was brought to an end at the start of April following a 2-0 defeat at European rivals Fiorentina, and it signalled the beginning of a five-game winless run.
The most recent of those fixtures came on Wednesday evening, when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Hellas Verona. They had taken the lead thanks to a goal from Lorenzo De Silvestri just minutes after being reduced to 10 men, but a quick-fire equaliser from Luca Toni made it another night to forget for Sinisa Mihajlovic and his players.
The Blucerchiati are still fifth in the league table and in command of a European place, but their city rivals Genoa are just a point behind them, with Fiorentina and the in-form duo of Inter Milan and Torino also closing in quickly.
As well as their recent dip in form, they have also suffered a major blow, with highly-rated striker Eder ruled out until the end of the season due to a knee injury that he sustained in last weekend's defeat to Napoli.
Recent form: WLDDLD
Juventus
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Juventus are just a point away from retaining their title and winning a record 31st Scudetto, as their superiority of Italian football shows no signs of ending.
At the start of the season, many people were tipping Rudi Garcia's Roma to be their main challengers for the Serie A trophy, but they have made light work of their rivals to open up a 14-point lead at the top with a month left to play.
The title could have been secured twice already this week, but on Sunday they fell to a shock 2-1 defeat against Torino, while on Wednesday evening a 3-2 win over Fiorentina was not enough to see them crowned champions, due to second-placed Lazio's victory over Parma.
Massimiliano Allegri will be desperate for his team to finally wrap up the league this weekend, with the first leg of their Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid taking place next Tuesday. The Juventus manager has made a number of changes to his starting lineup in recent weeks before crucial European games, but with the title on the line it is likely that he will play his strongest side.
It is that rotation policy that has seen the Bianconeri lose two of their last four league matches, having suffered just one defeat previously all season. They have also let in four goals in their past two games, which is surprising considering that they had conceded just one goal in the 10 matches that came beforehand.
As well as winning the Scudetto this weekend, there could be another record broken at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris, as Andrea Pirlo is just one free kick away from equalling Sampdoria manager Mihajlovic's Serie A tally of 28 goals from set pieces.
Recent form in Serie A: WWLWLW
Recent form (all competitions): LWWDLW
Team News
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Sampdoria will have to make do without Afriyie Acquah, who was sent off during the draw against Verona.
He is expected to be replaced by Roberto Soriano, while Samuel Eto'o is also pushing for a start.
Meanwhile, Juventus are able to welcome back Leonardo Bonucci following his recent suspension.
Arturo Vidal should also return to the starting lineup and Fernando Llorente may keep his place after scoring in midweek.
A spot up front seems almost certain for Carlos Tevez, who scored twice against Fiorentina to take his tally to 28 goals this season.
Paul Pogba is ahead of schedule with his recovery from a hamstring injury, but he is not expected to feature until next week's Champions League match.
Sampdoria possible starting lineup:
Viviano, De Silvestri, Romagnoli, Silvestre, Mesbah, Obiang, Palombo, Soriano, Muriel, Eto'o, Okaka
Juventus possible starting lineup:
Buffon, Lichtsteiner, Chiellini, Bonucci, Evra, Marchisio, Pirlo, Vidal, Pereyra, Tevez, Llorente
Head To Head
In this season's reverse fixture, Sampdoria came from behind to earn a 1-1 draw against Juventus in Turin.
Sampdoria generally have a good record against Juventus and they have won three of their last eight meetings with the Bianconeri, including two wins in the last five games.
There is also plenty of excitement whenever these teams play each other and there have been 30 goals scored in the last nine games between them.
We say: Sampdoria 1-2 Juventus
With the title up for grabs on Saturday evening, Juventus will be fired up and eager to get the result they need. It would be a huge confidence boost for the Bianconeri ahead of their tie with Real Madrid to be crowned champions and although Sampdoria are a good team, we don't think that they will be able to stop Allegri's side from picking up all three points.
Alex Meyers
