Juventus Desperately Seeking Points
Copyright � 2000 Nando Media
Copyright � 2000 Agence France-Presse
MILAN (April 6, 2000 9:48 p.m. EDT http://www.sportserver.com) - Serie A leader Juventus travels to Bologna this weekend in desperate need of three points after suffering two bruising defeats that reopened the Italian championship.
Juventus' nine-point lead is just a memory after it lost to AC Milan and Lazio in little more than a week. Just three points now separates Lazio from Carlo Ancelotti's men, with six matches still to play.
"It's not a lead that can give you any certainties, but it's enough for us not to get agitated," Ancelotti claimed in the wake of the defeat to Lazio.
Now his team must put that theory into practice against Bologna, ideally by demonstrating a renewed harmony among the two strikers - Alessandro Del Piero and Filippo Inzaghi.
The two men told a news conference this week that their rapport on the pitch, which was clearly under strain, was still intact and they denied reports that they had sworn and slapped at each other.
"Bologna's a tough stadium to play in, and the team are coming off two defeats which cut our lead," said Inzaghi.
"But it will be an ideal occasion to prove that we two are not playing against each other and that we're concentrating our attention on Juventus."
Lazio has some bouncing-back to do of its own against Perugia after getting hammered 5-2 by Valencia on Wednesday night.
Its dreams of a Treble - Sven Goran Eriksson's side is also through to the Italian Cup final with Inter Milan - have lasted less than a week.
Lazio was badly let down by its defense in Spain, but also by its much-vaunted midfield - with the exception of Argentinian Juan Sebastian Veron - which failed to block the Spaniard's route to goal.
Eriksson will be looking to put that right on Sunday, if only because he knows that Juventus will almost certainly win their match.
Behind the top two sides, a separate battle is being fought for two places in the preliminary rounds of the next Champions League. Three teams are locked on 49 pts (Inter, AC Milan and Parma) and one on 46 pts (AS Roma).
Inter has a difficult away game with Udinese on Saturday night and will again be without injured center-forward Christian Vieri - the strike pair being veteran Ivan Zamorano and new hope Alvaro Recoba.
After three draws and one defeat in its last four games, Inter needs to start winning if it is not to be overtaken.
Milan, the reigning champion, is at home to Fiorentina on Sunday night.
With Spanish striker Jose Mari injured, Milan coach Alberto Zaccheroni is turning to Germany's Oliver Bierhoff to partner Ukrainian Andriy Shevchenko, the Serie A's top scorer with 21 goals.
Parma, which is away to relegation candidates Torino, is the on-form team among the four Champions League hopefuls.
Alberto Malesani's men have won their last five games and have little to fear from their opponents in Turin on Saturday.
Roma managed to end a run of three consecutive league defeats last weekend, but its 1-1 draw with Udinese did little to improve the mood of the home fans who booed before, during and after the match.
On Sunday, it travels to Lecce, where Inter Milan lost two weeks ago, with the very real risk of being left behind for good in that race to the lucrative Champions League.
Serie A fixtures (1300 GMT unless stated)
Saturday: Torino v Parma, Udinese v Inter Milan (1830 GMT); Sunday: Bologna v Juventus, Cagliari v Verona, Lazio v Perugia, Lecce v AS Roma, Piacenza v Bari, Reggina v Venezia, AC Milan v Fiorentina (1830 GMT)
