Juventus train ahead of last 16 clash against Tottenham

Juventus trained on Monday ahead of the first leg of their last 16 clash against Tottenham in the Champions League.

The two teams will meet at the Allianz Stadium on Tuesday evening having both qualified from the Group Stages.

Tottenham stormed through as winners of a tough group that consisted of Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund and APOEL while Juventus came second to Barcelona in their group.

Juventus forward Gonzalo Higuain tries to control the ball during training on Monday morning

Paulo Dybala, who has been injured since early January, also took part in Juventus training

Paulo Dybala, who has been injured since early January, also took part in Juventus training

Manager Massimiliano Allegri took charge of the session ahead of the clash with Tottenham

Manager Massimiliano Allegri took charge of the session ahead of the clash with Tottenham

Midfielder Claudio Marchisio tries to volley to a team-mate as Sami Khedira watches on

Midfielder Claudio Marchisio tries to volley to a team-mate as Sami Khedira watches on

The Serie A side are anticipating a difficult affair and stepped up their preparations ahead of the clash.

All their stars were out on show as manager Massimiliano Allegri took charge of a session at their Vinovo training centre on Monday morning.

Paulo Dybala, who has scored 17 goals in all competitions this season but none in Europe, took part and could be in contention to feature on Tuesday evening.

The Argentine is a key player for Juventus but has been out with a hamstring injury since early January and Allegri will be hopeful he will be ready to return to action against Tottenham.

Dybala done some stretching exercises on his own before joining in with the rest of the squad

Dybala done some stretching exercises on his own before joining in with the rest of the squad

Douglas Costa tried an acrobatic overhead kick during training at their Vinovo facilities

Douglas Costa tried an acrobatic overhead kick during training at their Vinovo facilities

Higuain and Co take part in training on the eve of their Champions League last 16 first leg

Higuain and Co take part in training on the eve of their Champions League last 16 first leg

Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino holds Dybala in high regard and oddly admitted he also hopes he will be available to play.

He told Rai Sport: ‘I think Dybala will recover and I hope he does, because I think it’s always nice to play against the best in the world.

‘I put Dybala in that category, because he is a special talent and seeing him on the pitch is wonderful, even if he might cause your team a few problems.’ 

One Argentine the Juve boss will certainly be able to call upon is Gonzalo Higuain. The forward has been in sensational form of late, netting six times in his last four matches.

Stefano Sturaro and Stephan Lichtsteiner laugh and joke around during the morning session

Stefano Sturaro and Stephan Lichtsteiner laugh and joke around during the morning session

Higuain slides in to try and tackle his Argentine compatriot Dybala during a light exercise

Higuain slides in to try and tackle his Argentine compatriot Dybala during a light exercise

Juventus defender Alex Sandro smiles as he prepares to whip in cross for a team-mate

Juventus defender Alex Sandro smiles as he prepares to whip in cross for a team-mate

Higuain also trained on Monday and participated in some light stretching exercises as well as a passing drill.

The spirit in the Juve camp appeared to be high ahead of the match with Stefano Sturaro, Stephan Lichtsteiner and Alex Sandro all snapped laughing and joking around. 

Andrea Barzagli did not take part in the session and trained separately after reporting irritation in his right calf muscle.

The defender is expected to sit out of the tie along with Juan Cuadrado and Blaise Matuidi. Douglas Costa did train and tried an acrobatic overhead kick during the session, but is also set to miss out.



Read more at DailyMail.co.uk