Antonio Conte’s Juventus go into this tie as firm favorites to pick up the three points. The Bianconeri are comfortable league leaders, having won 4 out of the last 6 games and drawing 2. They have won their last 6 home games on the trot and the last 5 Turin derbies, with Torino last picking up a draw in 2008.

Torino have been a breath of fresh air in Serie A this season with their brand of entertaining, attacking football. They sit 6th in Serie A with 24 games played, ahead of the likes of Milan and Lazio. A much improved performance compared to the previous season when they finished 16th, which is even more impressive when one takes into account their modest financial capabilities.

Both teams go into the game with their key players in good form. For Juve, the list goes on and on. Paul Pogba is ever fulfilling his mercurial potential, Andrea Pirlo is still as graceful as he has ever been, Arturo Vidal is successfully bulldozing his way through opponents and Giorgio Chiellini is keeping the defense tight and compact. Carlos Tevez and Fernando Llorente also go into the game in great goal scoring form.

Torino’s most important players in attack are Alessio Cerci and Ciro Immobile, both having scored 11 and 13 goals this season compared to Tevez and Llorente’s 13 and 10. Cerci has also provided 8 assists this term. Giuseppe Vives has been doing a good job marshalling the midfield while Nikola Maksimović has been nothing short of exceptional at the back, in spite of not playing the last game.

This is definitely going to be a very exciting, entertaining game. Both teams share a historical, fierce rivalry and neither is going to want to lose this game. Torino may be underdogs for the game. Although, having drawn against the likes of Milan, Roma, Inter and Fiorentina this season, they will by no means be pushovers. It should be fiercely contested, with a lot of tackles, tactical preparation, and hopefully, attacking play by both teams.

The coaches Antonio Conte and Giampiero Ventura deploy the same 3-5-2 formation. Both their teams are comfortable attacking through the center and the wings. Although the Bianconeri are nigh impenetrable at home, the Granata come off a classy 3-1 away win against the resilient Hellas Verona who sit one place below them in 7th position. Torino have picked up their away form, having won 3, drawing 2 and losing 1 of their last 6 away games.

The key to a good game will be for Il Toro’s flair players such as Cerci and Immobile to be at their best, they should go about playing their normal, attacking game and not show the Old Lady too much respect. They must show unwavering concentration defensively in order to prevent conceding an early or cheap goal. However, Juve like to dominate possession and have an average of 58% this season. That could be used as an advantage for il Toro as they are devastating on the counter attack. They have scored 20% of their 39 goals in Serie A this season in such a manner.

Juventus played last thursday in the Europa League knockout tie against Turkish outfit Trabzonspor while Torino had a few extra days of recovery, they should go into this tie all guns blazing. They have nothing to lose and much to gain. The bragging rights are there for the taking although they are not favorites; they may very well make history by earning a victory against their bitter rivals for the first time in 19 years.