Villarreal v Juventus predictions: Yellow Submarine can record statement win

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Villarreal v Juventus in the last 16 of the Champions League.

Where to watch

BT Sport 3, 8pm Tuesday

Best bet

Villarreal
1pt 6-4 Coral, Hills

Team news

Villarreal
Francis Coquelin, Gerard Moreno and Ruben Pena are all out, while Giovani Lo Celso and Etienne Capoue are doubts.

Juventus
Paulo Dybala is set to miss out and Max Allegri has confirmed Dusan Vlahovic will make his first European start, while Leonardo Bonucci is also back in training. Giorgio Chiellini, Federico Chiesa, Daniele Rugani and Luca Pellegrini, meanwhile, are sidelined.

Match preview

Villarreal defied expectations to win the Europa League last season and can make waves in the continent's biggest club football competition this term by taking a lead in their last-16 tie with Serie A giants Juventus.

This is the first time Villarreal have reached the knockout stage of the Champions League since the 2008-09 season but they are shaping up nicely ahead of their two-legged affair with the Old Lady.

The Yellow Submarine have won nine of their last 13 matches in all competitions and that streak includes a 3-2 defeat of Atalanta in their final Champions League group stage match.

That victory saw Villarreal finish only one point off Group F winners Manchester United, whereas last-16 opponents Juve topped Group H ahead of Chelsea, Zenit and Malmo.

Finishing above the reigning European champions was quite an achievement from Juventus but they have failed to translate that form to Serie A, in which they are struggling to merely hold on to a top-four berth.

They go into Tuesday night's contest at the Estadio de la Ceramica having been held to draws by Atalanta and Torino in their last two games and will be missing the cutting edge attacking play of Paulo Dybala for this match.

Serie A followers will be quick to point out that Dybala's deputy Dusan Vlahovic, who joined the club from Fiorentina in January, is an able replacement but the Serb has never played in the Champions League before.

The knockout stages of this competition will bring a pressure he is not used to and despite his obvious ability as a goalscorer, he may take time to settle into the tie.

That will aid Villarreal's cause as will this season's abolition of the away-goals rule.

With the knowledge that the tie will not turn on its head if Juve bag a goal, the La Liga club are more likely to play on the front foot.

And even with key forward Gerard Moreno absent, they are more than capable of causing problems for a defence which is set to be without Giorgio Chiellini and likely to start without Leonardo Bonucci.

Villarreal boss Unai Emery has plenty of European experience under his belt, winning four Europa League titles in his career, and will know how to manage this tie.

His side have been especially strong on their own patch this term - only Manchester United, Barcelona and Osasuna have won at the El Madrigal all season.

And although Juventus are unbeaten in their last seven contests, they have failed to win any of their last three on their travels and could be the latest team to leave the Villarreal venue disappointed.

Key stat

Villarreal have won three of their last four matches, drawing the other with Real Madrid.

Inside info

Villarreal

Penalty taker Arnaut Danjuma
Free-kick wizard Dani Parejo
Set-piece aerial threat Pau Torres
Card magnet Raul Albiol

Juventus

Penalty taker Dusan Vlahovic
Free-kick wizardFederico Bernardeschi
Set-piece aerial threatJuan Cuadrado
Card magnetMatthijs de Ligt

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