Juventus ready to show their true colours

Nicola Legrottaglie wants Juventus to show their "true strength" in their hour of need, with coach Luigi Delneri's injury-ravaged side chasing a UEFA Europa League Group A home win against FC Salzburg.

If last Saturday's 2-1 Serie A victory at AC Milan lifted the Bianconeri to fourth place and raised their Scudetto hopes, the Turin club's chances of reaching the UEFA Europa League round of 32 could plummet if they lose at home to the Austrian champions. Third in the section after three straight draws, Delneri's men have not won in Europe since beating Salzburg's domestic rivals SK Sturm Graz twice in their UEFA Europa League play-off. And they go into Thursday's game beset by injury problems.

However, defender Legrottaglie pointed to an equally tricky time in the 2008/09 UEFA Champions League for inspiration. "We were in a similar situation two years ago," said the 34-year-old. "We had lots of players injured but it was at that moment that the squad showed their real strength. I'm sure we will repeat that scenario. I have faith in this group. We will play a great game."

Even so, should José María Bakero mark his KKS Lech Poznań coaching debut by scalping Group A leaders Manchester City FC, a Juventus defeat by Salzburg would leave Legrottaglie and company bottom – four points adrift of the top two with two games to go. The permutations do not worry Delneri, though.

"I'm relaxed as I trust my team," said the coach, who was appointed in May. "We have worked really well in training in recent weeks and got a couple of good results that have lifted everyone. Juventus are a huge club so every game is like an exam for us, but we are well prepared and I'm sure our performance will be good."

Reassuring words, yet there may be some alarm among Juve supporters if injuries to the likes of Giorgio Chiellini, Paolo De Ceglie, Mohamed Sissoko and Felipe Melo force Delneri to turn to youth teamers to make up the numbers against Salzburg. "If I can't count on Sissoko and Melo, I'll use Manuel Giandonato together with Claudio Marchisio in midfield," added Delneri.

Boniperti Jr

Another 19-year-old drafted into the squad bears a name that needs no introduction to Juve fans: Filippo Boniperti. He is the grandson of club favourite Giampiero, Juventus's top all-time scorer in Serie A until Alessandro Del Piero scored his 179th top-flight goal against Milan on Saturday. Five days on, Del Piero could even start alongside Boniperti Jr in attack.

Whatever he decides, Delneri is showing no sign of panic as kick-off approaches, regardless of the strength of the opposition. "Salzburg are a good team and very quick," he said. "They made our life difficult a fortnight ago [in a 1-1 draw]. This game will be crucial for us because a win would move us up the standings before a difficult game in Poland next time. We'll try to win because we want to go as far as possible in this competition as we care about Europe."