The Serie A contest between Juventus and Fiorentina will kick off at 12:30 CET on Sunday, along with four other fixtures.
The Bianconeri currently sit third in the Serie A table, but their place in the Champions League is far from secured, as Milan and Roma are one point behind them, and Como just two points adrift.
Napoli are currently second in the table, but a defeat to Bologna on Monday evening will delay their qualification. Therefore, the race for the European spots will go down to the wire.
Juventus vs Fiorentina & four other fixtures set for a surprising time slot
As per custom, the teams involved in a battle for positions must play simultaneously in the last two rounds of the season to avoid any advantages.
Therefore, the Lega Serie A decided to place all fixtures involving teams battling for European spots on Sunday’s early kickoff.
These fixtures are Pisa-Napoli, Juventus-Fiorentina, Genoa-Milan, Como-Parma, and the Derby della Capitale between Roma and Lazio.
The other fixtures will also take place on Sunday, but later in the day. This includes Inter vs Hellas Verona, which will witness the Nerazzurri’s Scudetto ceremony.
How Jannik Sinner impacted the Serie A schedule
Needless to say, the players, clubs, and supporters are displeased with this unpopular time slot, especially with the temperatures in Italy on the rise.
However, the Lega Serie A didn’t have any other choice due to a combination of factors surrounding the Roman Derby.
Since Lazio are playing the Coppa Italia final against Inter on Wednesday evening, they weren’t going to play again on Saturday.
On Sunday afternoon, the final of the Italian Open (a global tennis tournament) will take place in the same sports complex as the Stadio Olimpico, with the whole nation expecting local hero Jannik Sinner to be involved. Therefore, the Derby had to be played earlier in the day to avoid an overabundance of fans.
Moreover, the local police refused to authorise an evening Derby due to unsavoury crowd trouble that had occurred on previous occasions.
