Celebrations at the Juventus stadium, as the first club-owned facility in Italian football was named, are set for Thursday, when Notts County are expected in Turin as guests of honour in an opening friendly.

The side from the League One, the third tier in England’s professional football, were invited for their historical ties with Juventus.

In 1903, the Nottingham club shipped to Turin a set of their black-white striped jerseys, which have since replaced the pink that Juve players had donned since the club’s foundation in 1897.

Among those wishing well to a side that still seeks recovery from the blows taken in 2006 — relegation and stripped of two titles — for their role in a wide corruption scandal, was UEFA president and former Juve ace Michel Platini.

In Turin this week for a charity golf tournament, Platini said that “in their new stadium Juve can again play a big role in the history of football.

“At the Comunale (where he won two Serie A titles in the 1980s) the black-whites have won for about 100 years. I hope that in the new facility they can repeat their success.

“An owned stadium is a beautiful thing. All the big clubs should  follow the example of the Bianconeri.”   

Beside the enthusiasm for the 41,000-seat, state-of-the-art stadium, which was built where the gigantic Stadio delle Alpi stood  from 1990 to 2006, Platini was lukewarm about the team’s chances to vie for the title.

“They have a good potential, but, not knowing well the players and the opponents, I’d rather postpone my judgement to the end of the season,” he said.

Since returning to the top flight in 2007, Juve have gone through major lineup overhauls virtually every year and changed coaches four times in four years.

Former midfield ace Antonio Conte, 42, arrived as coach along with eight new players — Andrea Pirlo, Mirko Vucinic and Eljero Elia among them - for the season starting next weekend after a delay  imposed by a footballers’ strike.

Conte has often said that the team is a work in progress and recalled the seventh place of the past two seasons.

“We want to start winning again soon,” Conte said. “This year we  must lay the basis, knowing that it will take time and patience.”   

Conte, too, expects benefits from the new stadium, which unlike the delle Alpi and the Comunale, named Olimpico and renovated in 2006, has no running track.

“It will have to be bedlam,” the coach said, “With the public close to the pitch, ready to incite the team in difficult moments. Our fans can make us gain many points.”   

Most juventini feel they have waited enough for the return of the golden days — Juve are the Serie A top winning club with 27 scudetti — but they still gave a warm welcome to the new stadium, buying season tickets for more than half the seats.