Coppa Italia: Juventus vs. Udinese – Confirmed line-ups

Juventus get their Coppa Italia campaign underway with a visit from Udinese in the Round of 16 on Thursday evening, and Luciano Spalletti has turned to Jonathan David and Kenan Yildiz in attack in the absence of leading goalscorer Dusan Vlahovic.

Kick-off is due at 20.00 GMT (21.00 CET).

You can see how the action unfolds on the Football Italia Liveblog.

Juventus confirmed earlier on Tuesday that Spalletti will be without six first-team players in Dusan Vlahovic, Gleison Bremer, Daniele Rugani, Arkadiusz Milik and goalkeepers Mattia Perin and Carlo Pinsoglio.

Vlahovic is set to be sidelined for at least three months with a high-grade adductor tear, although some reports suggest that the recovery period could potentially be closer to five months. That means that Yildiz and David are chosen to lead the Bianconeri attack in the cup this evening.

Perin had started Juve’s last two matches, against Cagliari and Bodo/Glimt, but is out with a muscular injury, which means that Michele Di Gregorio returns in goal.

Pre-match reports suggest that the Juventus side will line up in a 4-4-2, moving away from the 3-4-2-1 shape that Spalletti has stuck with for the initial period of his Bianconeri tenure. Pierre Kalulu is expected to start at right-back, with Juan Cabal on the opposite flank and Federico Gatti and Lloyd Kelly at centre-back.

Khephren Thuram and Manuel Locatelli are given a rest in midfield, with Teun Koopmeiners and Fabio Miretti the chosen pair in the centre of the park. Weston McKennie and Andrea Cambiaso are likely to start as wide midfielders.

Udinese have already beaten Carrarese and Palermo in the earlier rounds of the Coppa Italia in order to qualify for this evening’s round of 16 tie.

Kosta Runjaic’s side have travelled to Turin without Thomas Kristensen or Hassane Kamara. The coach has made several rotations, but star attacker Nicolo Zaniolo has been selected as a starter in Turin.

Juventus (3-4-2-1): Di Gregorio; Kalulu, Gatti, Kelly, Cabal; McKennie, Koopmeiners, Miretti, Cambiaso; Yildiz, David.

Udinese (3-5-2): Sava; Palma, Solet, Bertola; Ehizibue, Lovric, Zarraga, Atta, Zemura; Zaniolo, Buksa.