Players run laps during a warm up after the Juventus FC welcome ceremony at Lakeside Stadium. Credit:Getty Images The cheapest ticket on offer for Juventus v Victory costs $50.98. That's to sit on level one. A platinum ticket, which will get you to level two, costs $214.10. There are ticket prices in between, of course, but that's the price range - for what is essentially a pre-season friendly. Where you're sitting is important - as Michael Lynch wrote this time last year, the MCG is not a great venue for soccer. It's just not designed for it. If you're up on the top deck, you're too far away. On level one, it's hard to see over to the other side of the pitch, because it's so far away and the sight lines are off. Level two is not bad, but you're still pretty far from the action - and it will cost you a fair bit. The ticket prices are just too high. Yes, we might need to throw money at teams to convince them to come all the way to Australia. We're a little bit out of the way. But how can you ask fans to shell out that much for tickets, and not even bring the big-name players? To give you an idea, the list of Juve players who aren't coming is almost as long as the list of players who are. No Gianluigi Buffon. No Leonardo Bonucci. No Paul Pogba. No Sami Khedira. No Marchisio, Barzagli, Zaza, Chiellini or Mandzukic.

Absent: Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is among those missing the Melbourne trip Credit:AP Most of the players left out of the squad have had a taxing European summer, having featured in the European Championships in France almost immediately after their own domestic seasons ended. It's very much understandable that clubs would want to rest these players. In fact, you could even say it's expected. So why should fans have to pay so much to see Juventus' B-team? Juventus defender Daniele Rugani arrives at a welcome ceremony in Melbourne Credit:Getty Images The fact is, they might not. Fairfax Media understands that the expected crowd for this Saturday night is somewhere between 25,000-30,000. And that creates another problem - it's going to be hard to generate a good atmosphere in a ground as big as the 'G with numbers like those. With the participating teams in the middle of their off-seasons, atmosphere will likely be just as important as what happens on the pitch.

And the thing is, Australians have had the chance to see international soccer stars in action here, for less money, with more on the line. The ticket prices are just too high. Yes, we might need to throw money at teams to convince them to come all the way to Australia. We're a little bit out of the way. But how can you ask fans to shell out that much for tickets, and not even bring the big-name players? Claire Siracusa At the Asian Cup in 2015, tickets to see the Socceroos play in the group stages were available from $49 (except for the opening match, including the opening ceremony, which was $20 more expensive). Tickets to the final were priced from $79-$149. You could get into a non-Socceroos group match for less than $10. At the current exchange rate, it would have been about 60c cheaper to attend a group match at the Euros - in the highest price category - than it is to buy a ticket in the highest price category for this Saturday night. You could have gone to a quarter-final for AU$66.

Let's be clear, it's great to have international sides visit Australia. While the A-League is good, it's certainly not up to the standards that you find in Europe. And we could get some really great matches here this week. Looking at those prices, though, it just doesn't seem worth it. Tournament organisers have been contacted for comment.