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Football Italia

·25 July 2026

Football Italia

·25 July 2026

Juventus collected their first pre-season win, beating Standard Liege 1-0 away in Belgium, with Fabio Miretti scoring the only goal of the match.

This was Luciano Spalletti’s second pre-season outing of the summer after last weekend’s 0-0 draw with Basel. The Bianconeri head coach was still missing a number of his main first-team players, many of whom remain on holiday after their participation in the 2026 World Cup.

That meant there was no Gleison Bremer, no Weston McKennie, no Francisco Conceicao and no Jonathan David. Khephren Thuram and Kenan Yildiz are also working their way back to full fitness and were not involved in Belgium on Saturday.

INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 25: Kenan Yildiz of Turkiye in action during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group D match between Türkiye and USA at Los Angeles Stadium on June 25, 2026 in Los Angeles, United States. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

Juventus fielded a blend of youth and experience against Standard Liege. Lois Openda was the only senior centre-forward available in the matchday squad, but he was left out of the starting line-up with a loan switch to Lyon in Ligue 1 approaching.

That opened the door for 18-year-old striker Arman Durmisi to start. He was backed by Vasilije Adzic and Jeremie Boga in attack, while Manuel Locatelli and Douglas Luiz began together in central midfield.

LECCE, ITALY – MAY 09: Head coach of Juventus FC Luciano Spalletti smiles during the Serie A match between US Lecce and Juventus FC at Stadio Via del Mare on May 09, 2026 in Lecce, Italy. (Photo by Maurizio Lagana/Getty Images)

The hosts started at a high tempo and immediately put Juventus under pressure on the edge of their penalty area. Their first clear chance arrived after 10 minutes, when Gustav Mortensen delivered a cross for Timothe Nkada, who could not provide the final touch inside the area.

A mistake from Andrea Cambiaso after 22 minutes nearly allowed Standard Liege to move 1-0 ahead, but Federico Gatti made a crucial block to Alexis Trouillet’s effort and diverted it behind for a corner.

Douglas Luiz and Manuel Locatelli both sent shots over the crossbar midway through the first half, and the game gradually lost intensity as it moved towards the interval.

Spalletti made several changes at half-time and also altered the shape from a 3-4-2-1 to a 4-2-3-1. Mattia Perin, Zeki Celik, Joao Mario, Arthur Melo, Fabio Miretti and Justin Oboavwoduo were all introduced after the break.

Zeki Celik joins Juventus (Source: Juventus)

The breakthrough arrived 10 minutes into the second half when Miretti blasted a powerful free-kick from the edge of the penalty area into the net.

The midfielder was left unmarked and had a chance to complete a quick double almost straight away, but he was off balance when he struck the shot, and Ibe Hautekiet was relieved to make a late block.

Miretti 55’.

Standard Liege: Epolo; Mortensen, Hautekiet, Karamoko, Drammeh, Fossey, Ilaimaharitra, Trouillet, Nielsen, Abid, Nkada.

Juventus first-half XI (3-4-2-1): Di Gregorio; Kalulu, Gatti, Kelly; Cambiaso, Locatelli, D.Luiz, Licina; Adzic, Boga; Durmisi.

Juventus second-half XI (4-2-3-1): Perin; Celik, Kalulu, Kelly, J.Mario; Arthur, Locatelli; Cambiaso, Miretti, Oboavwoduo, Boga.

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