Dortmund's Immobile: Hometown friends 'have asked me to beat Juventus'

Ciro Immobile has a point to prove on Tuesday at the Juventus Stadium and has plenty of support from those close to him wishing for a Borussia Dortmund victory.

The Italian striker, born in a suburb of Naples and starring last season for Torino – where he led Serie A with 22 goals – is a product of the Juventus youth system, but only played five matches for the club before he was loaned out to various clubs and spent time as part of co-ownership deals before he was sold outright to Dortmund prior to this season.

Given his connection to both Napoli and Torino, two of Juventus's greatest rivals, the 25-year-old has some added incentive to help his current side topple the Bianconeri in the first leg of their Round of 16 clash on Tuesday.

"My friends in Turin, and also the Neapolitans have asked me to beat Juventus," Immobile told Corriere dello Sport, as translated by Football Italia.

While not expected to start the match – he has scored just three goals in 15 Bundesliga matches this season and will likely be on the bench in favor of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – Immobile could see some time as a substitute and would surely like to stick it to his former club if given the chance.