udine
Here it is the first real friendly match for Udinese, tonight on the pitch at 6 pm in Sankt Veit against Sturm Graz. After the first run with the modest Slovenian second division Bilje and last Saturday’s family gallop that replaced the test canceled against the Turks of Fenerbache, tonight’s friendly against Sturm Graz should be considered to all intents and purposes the first and demanding test to understand, with a certain reliability, the state of work at the Juventus home. The opportunity to evaluate condition, overall game and individuals is, in fact, what Luca Gotti is looking for, aware that tonight Udinese will not only face one of the nobles of the Austrian Bundesliga who will also play the Europa League, but above all a team that has already made its debut in the league last Friday (1-3 with the champions of Salzburg) and that since last June 25 has already played five friendlies, including those with Krakow and Red Star of Belgrade, after having easily overcome the first round of the cup national.
The bianconeri from Graz are therefore ahead in their preparation and if Udinese were looking for an ideal opponent to find an approach to the match climate and the right measures to be taken between the departments, the Sturm coached by the 43-year-old Christian Ilzer is what is needed. The test will start from 6 pm and will be televised live from the official channel of the Juventus club, after the confirmation arrived yesterday and following the decision of the Austrian authorities not to open the gates of the Jacques Lemans Arena in Sankt Veit, thus not allowing access for public order reasons, contrary to what was initially established. In short, no trip out of town for the Friulian fans who could have and wanted to see Udinese live with a green pass. Too bad, one might say, also because it is the second “inconvenience” recorded in a few days after the cancellation of the test with Fenerbache that should have taken place in Villach.
According to the latest arrivals from retirement, tonight Gotti will propose a Udinese with two modules, the 3-5-2 and the 4-2-3-1 on which the bianconeri have been working since the beginning of the preparation. Unless unavailable or tired of the last hour, Gotti will have everyone available. The question mark remains on Gerard Deulofeu who returned to training separately in the morning yesterday. –