Nantes vs Juventus facts

A place in the UEFA Europa League round of 16 awaits either Nantes or Juventus, who go into the second leg of their knockout play-off in western France all-square after an eventful 1-1 draw in Turin.

Nantes, appearing in major European competition for the first time in 21 years, recovered from a three-game losing run in UEFA Europa League Group G to finish runners-up behind Freiburg. Juve, meanwhile, recorded a club-record low of just three points in their autumn UEFA Champions League campaign but claimed third place on goal difference to extend their European involvement into the spring for the 11th successive season and return to the UEFA Europa League for the first time since 2013/14.

Previous meetings

Juventus took the lead in the first leg when Dušan Vlahović swept in a headed assist from Federico Chiesa on 13 minutes, but the home side were unable to add to their lead and Nantes equalised on the hour with a third goal in as many UEFA Europa League matches from Ludovic Blas, his emphatic finish completing a swift counterattack. Chiesa was later denied by the crossbar and post as Nantes held on for a 1-1 draw.

The clubs have been paired once previously in UEFA competition, in the semi-finals of the 1995/96 UEFA Champions League, Juventus prevailing 4-3 on aggregate before going on to lift the trophy for the second time in the final against Ajax.

Gianluca Vialli and Vladimir Jugović made it 2-0 in the Turin first leg after visiting midfielder Bruno Carotti's red card. Marcello Lippi's side were always in control when Vialli struck early in the second leg at the Stade Beaujoire, though Jean-Claude Suaudeau's Nantes came back to win the match 3-2, Eddy Capron equalising and Japhet N'Doram and substitute Franck Renou scoring further goals for the home side after Paulo Sousa had restored the Italian club's lead.

Nantes have lost all five of their two-legged ties against Italian opposition. Their all-time record in matches against teams from Italy is W3 D5 L5, the only victories other than that 1996 second-leg win against Juventus both coming in the first group stage of the 2001/02 UEFA Champions League – their last major European campaign before this one – when they did the double over Lazio (3-1 a, 1-0 h). Their record at home to Italian visitors is W2 D1 L3.

Juve won all of their first 12 two-legged knockout ties against French opponents, but that perfect record was halted in the 13th and most recent contest before this one, against Lyon in the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League round of 16, which they lost on away goals (0-1 a, 2-1 h). A 2-1 defeat at Paris Saint-Germain on Matchday 1 of this season's UEFA Champions League made the Turin club's record in France W6 D3 L7.

Form guide

Nantes

Winners of eight French league titles, Nantes ended a 21-year trophy drought in 2021/22 by capturing the Coupe de France for the fourth time with a 1-0 win in the final against Nice. Ninth in Ligue 1, the club's cup win also secured a return to major European club competition after a 21-year absence, though they did compete in the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 2003 and 2004.

Antoine Kombouaré's side earned direct access to the UEFA Europa League group stage with their French Cup triumph and were one of four debutants at that juncture of this season's competition. They kicked off Group G with a 2-1 home win against Olympiacos but lost their next three matches without scoring – 0-3 at Qarabağ and back-to-back against Freiburg (0-2 a, 0-4 h) – before rallying with closing victories against the champions of Azerbaijan (2-1 h) and Greece (2-0 a) to lift themselves into second place.

While this is their debut season in the UEFA Europa League, Nantes competed in 11 UEFA Cup campaigns, reaching the quarter-finals in 1985/86 and 1994/95. Their last knockout tie was a fourth round defeat to Porto (1-3 a, 2-1 h) in 2000/01.

Nantes were unbeaten in eight home games in the UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League, winning seven, before their heavy Matchday 4 defeat by Freiburg. However, they have not kept a clean sheet in their last six home matches over the two versions of the competition.

Nantes have won two and lost two of the four UEFA ties in which they drew the first away leg, the two successes having come on each of the two previous occasions when the first leg score was 1-1 – against Dukla Praha in the 1977/78 European Cup first round (0-0 h) and Partizan in the 1985/86 UEFA Cup second round (4-0 h).

Juventus

Having won a record nine successive Serie A titles between 2012 and 2020, Juve finished fourth for the second season running in 2021/22 – their first with serial Scudetto-winning head coach Massimiliano Allegri back at the helm after two years away. They also fell in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 for the third successive season, losing to Villarreal (1-1 a, 0-3 h).

This term Juve made their 23rd UEFA Champions League group stage appearance but it turned out to be a short-lived campaign. Defeated twice by both Paris (1-2 a, 1-2 h) and Benfica (1-2 h, 3-4 a), they also traded wins with Maccabi Haifa (3-1 h, 0-2 a) but pipped the Israeli champions to third place on goal difference.

Three-time UEFA Cup winners, in 1977, 1990 and 1993, the Bianconeri have appeared in three previous UEFA Europa League campaigns, reaching the round of 16 in 2009/10, exiting at the group stage in 2010/11, when they drew all six matches, and making it all the way to the semi-finals in 2013/14, when they were knocked out by Benfica (1-2 a, 0-0 h) with the final tantalisingly staged at their home stadium.

Juventus have lost all three of their European away fixtures this season and are without a victory in their last five continental encounters on the road (D1 L4). In the UEFA Europa League knockout phase, however, their away record is W4 L2.

Juve have won seven of the nine UEFA competition ties in which they drew the home first leg, including the most recent, against Tottenham Hotspur in the 2017/18 UEFA Champions League round of 16 (2-2 h, 2-1 a). They have claimed aggregate successes in the last three of the four ties in which the first-leg home fixture ended 1-1, most recently beating Fiorentina 1-0 away in the second leg of the 2013/14 UEFA Europa League round of 16.

UEFA Europa League squad changes

Nantes

In: Fabien Centonze, Andy Delort (Nice, loan), Michel Junior Diaz, Florent Mollet (Schalke)
Out: Mohamed Achi, Joe-Loïc Affamah, Dennis Appiah (St-Étienne), Abdoul-Kader Bamba, Fábio (Grêmio)

Juventus

In: Gian Marco Crespi (Crotone, loan), Dean Huijsen
Out: Marley Aké (Dijon), Weston McKennie (Leeds)

Links and trivia 

Nantes goalkeeper Alban Lafont spent 2018/19 in Italy with Fiorentina, making 34 Serie A appearances and playing alongside current Juventus players Chiesa and Vlahović.

Juventus midfield duo Paul Pogba and Adrien Rabiot are both France internationals who have played alongside Nantes' Moussa Sissoko for Les Bleus.

Six Juventus players have plied their trade in France: Rabiot (Paris Saint-Germain 2012–19, Toulouse 2013 loan), Mattia De Sciglio (Lyon 2020–21), Moise Kean (Paris 2020–21 loan), Ángel Di María (Paris 2015–22), Leandro Paredes (Paris 2019–22) and Arkadiusz Milik (Marseille 2021–22).

Pogba was born in the Paris suburbs but has never played professional football in France, leaving Le Havre's youth academy in 2009 to join Manchester United.

Nantes defender Jean-Charles Castelletto played for Cameroon against Juve's Filip Kostić (Serbia) at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, scoring the opening goal in a 3-3 draw.

Nantes boss Kombouaré was in the Paris side that lost their 1992/93 UEFA Cup semi-final to Juventus (1-2 a, 0-1 h), playing from start to finish in both matches.

Penalty shoot-outs

Nantes have yet to feature in a UEFA penalty shoot-out.

Juventus's record in six UEFA penalty shoot-outs is W3 L3:
3-0 v Ajax, 1977/78 European Cup quarter-final
1-4 v Widzew Łódź, 1980/81 UEFA Cup second round
4-2 v Argentinos Juniors, 1985 European/South American Cup final
1-3 v Real Madrid, 1986/87 European Cup second round
4-2 v Ajax, 1995/96 UEFA Champions League final
2-3 v AC Milan, 2002/03 UEFA Champions League final