The Old Lady Speaks Podcast, Episode 330: Juventus’ Champions League hopes take a big hit
Rather than going into the first international break of 2026 with some good vibes, Juventus’ draw with Sassuolo on Saturday left us feeling the opposite of that — and the same goes for the hopes of the Bianconeri finishing in the top four.
Turin, Italy - March 21: Kenan Yildiz of Juventus Fc looks dejected during the Serie A match between Juventus FC and Us Sassuolo at Allianz Stadium on March 21, 2026 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by sportinfoto/DeFodi Images/DeFodi via Getty Images) | DeFodi Images via Getty Images Well, that was extremely upsetting. Rather than go into the international break with a third consecutive victory, Juventus laid an absolute egg in the second half of Saturday night’s matchup with Sassuolo and subsequently paid for it with a 1-1 draw against a short-handed side that had mutliple starting players either ruled out completely or in isolation during the week due to the whooping cough.
Yes, whooping cough! The cherry on top was Como absolutely thrashing relegation-bound Pisa in Sunday’s lunchtime kickoff — which, considering the quality and form of those two respective squads, was not a surprise at all . So now Juve enter the March international break in fifth place.
They’re three points behind Como. They don’t have the head-to-head tiebreaker over Como, too. Which means with eight games to go, Juventus need a lot to go their way if they want to qualify for the Champions League next season.
Good times, good times. You can listen to Episode 330 of The Old Lady Speaks Podcast on the player below or your favorite podcast platform. No matter how you listen, we appreciate your continued support.