And with everything happening off the field, we finally get to play a game again.
It might not be the best idea for some, but Juventus gets to play a game against a team that has seen a positive COVID-19 case re-opening after a full week. Hell, there was one just a few hours ago, Napoli pointed out, and a shorthand team got even more... well, shorthand. They have a trio of players traveling with the team, but have essentially been abandoned since they arrived in Turin.
So, it makes things a little interesting to come back from holiday break, doesn't it?
As Omicron has made his way through a good portion of Serie A over the past few weeks, Juventus' first game in the second half of the 2021-22 season has always seemed like it might be hanging by a thread. But, guess what - here we are. Juventus has arrived at the Allianz Stadium. The bus to Napoli, which I'm guessing is a bit on the side at the moment, has also arrived at Allianz Stadium. The two teams, dealing with their respective long lists of absences going into the first game of 2022, now meet on the same ground after so much off the field and talk of a possible postponement.
But, there will be a game after it goes live.
I mean, both teams are actually in this team's stadium, so there's going to be a game... right?
Rights?!?!
We finally get to see the start of this incredibly important month of January. The next three weeks will be crucial, with big time stability coming our way after big time stability. Almost every one of them will have a big impact on Juventus' chances of finishing in the top four, and the points they have to handle over the next few weeks are crucial. It doesn't matter if it's against Napoli, Roma or AC Milan, these fixtures are huge - and we all know it.
And after a week filled with discussions of local health officials and how many positive tests might appear every morning we wake up, we now get to see what could actually be an enjoyable part of the week - one between Juventus The actual game and Napoli.
MATCH INFO
When: Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022.
When: Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy.
Official kickoff time: 8:45 p.m. local time in Italy and across Europe; 7:45 p.m. in the United Kingdom; 2:45 p.m. Eastern Time; 11:45 a.m. Pacific Time.
STARTING LINEUPS
Juventus starting XI (4-3-3): Szczesny; Cuadrado, Rugani, de Ligt, Alex Sandro; McKennie, Locatelli, Rabiot; Chiesa, Morata, Bernardeschi.
Juventus bench: Perin, Senko, De Sciglio, Arthur, Bentancur, Kulusevski, Dybala, Kean.
Napoli starting XI (4-2-3-1): Ospina; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Juan Jesus, Ghoulam; Demme, Lobotka; Politano, Zielinski, Insigne; Mertens.
Napoli bench: Marfella, Idasiak, Zanoli, Costanzo, Spedalieri, Elmas, Vergara, Petagna.
HOW TO WATCH
Television: CBS Sports Network (United States); TLN (Canada); BT Sport 1 (United Kingdom).
Online/mobile: Paramount+, fuboTV (United States); BTSport.com, BT Sport App (United Kingdom); DAZN (Italy).
Other live viewing options can be found here, and as always, you can also follow along with us live and all the stupid things we say on Twitter. If you haven’t already, join the community on Black & White & Read All Over, and join in the discussion below.