Juventus have not lost in their last 46 league matches, and they could break AC Milan’s seemingly unbreakable record of 59 matches unbeaten against Parma in January. Can they break the Rossoneri’s record?
The run by Antonio Conte’ side is remarkable. From the last match of the 2010/11 season, through 38 games in 2011/12 and the first seven this season, Juve is unbeaten. AC Milan’s record is still 12 games away, admittedly a lot, but if Juve can complete the first half of the season without losing, they could set a new record against Parma in Week 20.
So who stands in the Bianconeri’s way of football immortality? The toughest test may well be their first fixture after the international break, when Napoli visit Juventus Stadium. Walter Mazzarri’s side came close to beating them last season: they led 2-0 and then 3-1 at the Stadio San Paolo, but couldn’t prevent the Old Lady from coming back. Mazzarri’s side are the only team to have beaten Juve during Conte’s reign; the Coppa Italia final in Rome remains Juve’s only defeat in the last 54 games.
This season Napoli and Juve are tied on points at the top of the standings so their meeting on Saturday 20 October is doubly significant: to take sole command of Serie A and for the unbeaten record.
If Juve avoid defeat to Napoli, they will have to have a tricky trip to Catania (1-1 last year) and at home match to Bologna before a clash that requires no extra motivation, against Inter.
After the Derby of Italy, the fixture list sends the reigning champions to Pescara before two more tough encounters against Lazio (home) and AC Milan (away).
The Turin derby on 10 December is perhaps the last big hurdle to clear because the final group of matches looks very manageable; Palermo away, Atalanta at home, Cagliari away then Sampdoria at home.
If Juventus does break the record of Fabio Capello’s phenomenal Rossoneri team, will any manager have started a career like Conte? Since arriving at Juventus in the summer of 2011, Conte’s team has lost just once in 54 games: 46 in Serie A, two in the Champions League, five in the Coppa Italia and one in the Italian Super Cup.
