Juve face Fiorentina as title race resumes

Second-placed Juventus take on Fiorentina at the Stadio Franchi tonight without defender Jonathan Zebina, who picked up a thigh injury during the 2-1 Champions League defeat by Liverpool in midweek.

The match was due to be played last weekend but all Serie A fixtures were called off following the death of the Pope.

Juventus are equal on 66 points with Milan but with a worse goal difference than the leaders, who have what appears to be an easier fixture at home against second from bottom Brescia.

Juve coach Fabio Capello will be hoping he does not lose any more of his players before the return leg of the Champions League quarter-final in Turin on Tuesday.

Many Fiorentina fans remember when Juventus won the title at their expense on the last day of the season in 1982 courtesy of a disputed penalty.

They will be keen to resurrect the rivalry after ending their two-year exile from Serie A and record their first home win over Juve since 1998.

Fiorentina coach Dino Zoff is expected to field an unfamiliar attack partnership of Enrico Fantini and 20-year-old Giampaolo Pazzini for the match.

Zoff has been forced to juggle his team, which is two points above the relegation zone, as leading scorer Fabrizio Miccoli is struggling to shake off an Achilles problem and former Lecce striker Valeri Bojinov is ruled out with a thigh strain.

Fiorentina are also without influential midfielder Christian Obodo, who is suspended.

Other matches

Bologna vs Inter - With Bologna battling for a UEFA Cup berth and Inter by no means assured of a place in next season's Champions League, this promises to be a nervy contest. Midfielder Leonardo Colucci is suspended for the hosts, while Inter coach Roberto Mancini's attack is weakened by injuries to Adriano and Alvaro Recoba.

Milan vs Brescia - Even with suspensions for playmaker Kaka and defender Jaap Stam, Milan will be confident of winning this match. The champions have won their last eight Serie A matches.

Brescia lie deep in the relegation zone after losing four of their last five games.

Atalanta vs Chievo - Once seven points adrift at the bottom of the division, Atalanta have breathed life back into their campaign with back-to-back wins over Parma and Sampdoria.

They should fancy their chances of overcoming Chievo, who have lost five of their last six games.

Cagliari vs Sampdoria - Cagliari have one of the best home records in the division, having lost only once at their Stadio Sant'Elia this season, but start without Gianfranco Zola, who injured his thigh during training.

Sampdoria will be keen to get their Champions League challenge back on course after suffering consecutive defeats against Milan and Atalanta.

Lazio vs Livorno - Suspension robs Livorno of their most prolific striker Cristiano Lucarelli, who scored the winner when these two teams met earlier this season.

Lazio striker Paolo Di Canio has recovered from injury but is likely to start on the bench as Roberto Muzzi takes his place in attack alongside Tommaso Rocchi.

Lecce vs Siena - Siena's bid to escape relegation is damaged by an injury to Norwegian striker Tore Andre Flo.

Lecce's top scorer Mirko Vucinic is suspended, but Sasa Bjelanovic should prove an able stand-in.

Palermo vs Messina - Palermo need to win this Sicilian derby to keep their challenge for a Champions League place alive.

Coach Francesco Guidolin will be concerned by the absence of suspended defender Andrea Barzagli from a team that has shipped 10 goals in its last three games.

Messina are expected to field a full-strength side.

Reggina vs Parma - Reggina are not safe from relegation, especially after their recent run of poor results, which includes defeats in their last three games.

Parma start without the defensive pairing of Paolo Cannavaro and Matteo Contini, who are both suspended.

Udinese vs Roma - While Udinese look forward to fielding a full-strength side at the Stadio Friuli, Roma are in terrible shape.

Their captain Francesco Totti, midfielders Simone Perotta and Daniele De Rossi and defender Christian Panucci are all suspended.

Injuries to defender Traianos Dellas and first-choice keeper Ivan Pelizzoli have left coach Bruno Conti to cobble together a team to reverse the club's miserable record of one win in their last eight games.

Serie A

Playing today
Bologna-Inter (2-2) 6 p.m.
Milan-Brescia (0-0) 6 p.m.
Fiorentina-Juventus (0-1) 8.30 p.m.

Playing tomorrow - 3 p.m.
Atalanta-Chievo (0-1)
Cagliari-Sampdoria (0-0)
Lazio-Livorno (0-1)

Lecce-Siena (1-1)
Palermo-Messina (0-0)
Reggina-Parma (0-1)
Udinese-Roma (3-0)

Serie B

Playing today - 8.30 p.m.
Bari-Catania (1-0)
Crotone-Triestina (0-1)
Genoa-AlbinoLeffe (3-0)
Perugia-Ternana (2-0)

Pescara-Salernitana (2-0)
Piacenza-Treviso (1-1)
Torino-Empoli (0-3)
Venezia-Catanzaro (0-0)
Vicenza-Ascoli (0-2)

Playing tomorrow
Modena-Verona (0-3) 8.45 p.m.

Bundesliga

Playing today
H. Berlin-Freiburg
B. Leverkusen-B. Dortmund
Bochum-Hanover

B. Munich-B. M'gladbach
Mainz-Wolfsburg
Stuttgart-Schalke
Hamburg-W. Bremen

Playing tomorrow
A. Bielefeld-Kaiserslautern
Nuremberg-H. Rostock

Primera Liga

Playing today
Numancia-A. Madrid
A. Bilbao-R. Sociedad

Playing tomorrow
Getafe-Albacete
Osasuna-R. Santander
Espanyol-Sevilla
R. Mallorca-R. Zaragoza

R. Betis-Levante
Valencia-Malaga
R. Madrid-Barcelona
Deportivo-Villarreal

Ligue 1

Playing today
Nantes-O. Lyon
Caen-Metz
Istres-Sochaux
Paris SG-Bordeaux

R. Lens-Nice
R. Strasbourg-Marseille
St Etienne-Bastia
Toulouse-Stade Rennes

Playing tomorrow
Ajaccio-Auxerre
Monaco-Lille