Zaccheroni´s Juve rescue op starts at Lazio

Alberto Zaccheroni will go straight into the firing line when he takes charge of his first game at home to Lazio on Saturday.

Alberto Zaccheroni will go straight into the firing line when the newly appointed Juventus coach takes charge of his first game at home to Lazio on Sunday.

Zaccheroni, out of work since his dismissal by Torino in February 2007, was drafted in by the Juventus board on Friday after their patience with Ciro Ferrara finally wore thin.

The 56-year-old, who guided AC Milan to the scudetto in 1999, inherits a squad desperately low on morale after five defeats in their last six league matches.

Sixth in the table, 16 points off Serie A leaders Inter Milan and out of both the Champions League and the Italian Cup, the best the Old Lady can realistically hope to rescue from a forgettable season is qualification for next season's Champions League.

A late Mario Balotelli strike saw them lose 2-1 to Inter in their Italian Cup quarter-final on Thursday, which proved to be Ferrara's last game at the helm.

- We have failed in yet another season aim. There is so much bitterness and everybody knows what the situation is - said Juventus president Jean-Claude Blanc.

Long list of injured players.

Zaccheroni will have to cope without a long list of injured players, including forward David Trezeguet and Italy winger Mauro Camoranesi, while goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon and defender Fabio Grosso are suspended.

Lazio are also in the doldrums after last weekend's 1-1 draw with Chievo left the Roman club just two points above the relegation zone in 15th.

It is a big change from the build-up to the early-season fixture between the sides after two league games, when they both had perfect records before a match that Juve won 2-0.

Second-placed AC Milan are looking for a response against Livorno on Sunday after their title ambitions suffered a sizeable blow with last weekend's 2-0 derby defeat to Inter.

They also went out of the Italian Cup with a 1-0 loss to Udinese on Wednesday.

Brazil forward Alexandre Pato is still unavailable with a thigh problem while influential centre-back Alessandro Nesta, badly missed against Inter, is fighting to shake off a leg muscle strain.

Struggling Livorno will visit the San Siro under Serse Cosmi, who made peace with club president Aldo Spinelli on Tuesday having resigned as coach after Sunday's 2-0 defeat by Napoli.

But they cannot count on first-choice goalkeeper Alfonso De Lucia and Brazilian midfielder Mozart because of suspension.

Inter, who are nine points clear after having played one game more than their city rivals, will be without Dutch playmaker Wesley Sneijder and Brazil defender Lucio at Parma on Sunday after their red cards in the derby.

But coach Jose Mourinho may be able to field Samuel Eto'o, who has returned from the Africa Cup of Nations with Cameroon, if an ankle knock is not too bad.

Roma, who are two points behind Milan in third, face Siena at home on Sunday.

Fourth-placed Napoli, who, like Roma, are in excellent form, entertain Genoa on Saturday with fifth-placed Palermo visiting Bari earlier that day.

Fiorentina, who have slipped down to ninth after some poor recent performances, will be without striker Adrian Mutu at Cagliari after he was suspensed by the National Anti-doping Tribunal following a positive doping test for the banned substance sibutramine.