Juventus beat Napoli at home in Allianz Stadium 2-1 in a crucial game for Serie A’s UEFA Champions League spot. This game was initially fixtured in round three but due to Covid-19 restrictions, the Napoli side could not travel to Turin. Serie A decided to give Juventus three points and Napoli were deducted a point.
But, later Napoli appealed that decision and Genarro Gattuso’s side got the decision in their favor and the game was rescheduled.
In the rescheduled fixture, Cristiano Ronaldo opened the account for Juventus in the first half. And in the second half, substitute Paulo Dybala doubled the margin. At the end of the game, Lorenzo Insigne gave a consultation to Napoli from the penalty spot.
With this victory, Juventus moved up to 3rd spot. Bianconeri now have 59 points in 29 games and Gli Azzurri remained in 5th place with 56 points in 29 games. This win will give Andrea Pirlo some breathing space and it might secure his job until the end of the season.
Juventus 2-1 Napoli team news:
Pirlo went with the usual 4-4-2 formation for the match. Ronaldo and Alvaro Morata led the line for the old lady. Matthijs De Ligt and Giorgio Chiellini were the defensive partnership in the absence of Leonardo Bonucci. Gianluigi Buffon started in goal and Wojciech Szczęsny was on the bench.
One of the best players for Juve this season, Federico Chiesa started on the left-wing. And Juan Cuadrado was on the right. Adrian Rabiot and Rodrigo Bentancur started in midfield. The suspended players Weston McKennie and Paulo Dybala were on the bench along with Arthur.
Gattuso went with his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation. Dries Mertens led the line for Napoli. Insigne started on the left-wing and Hirving Lozano on the right. Kalidou Koulibaly and Amir Rrahmani were the defensive partnership.
Juventus 2-1 Napoli match report:
Ronaldo missed a glorious opportunity from a handshaking distance. However, he rectified his mistake at the 13th-minute mark. Chiesa showed his quality on the ball and beat two men easily, then his excellent cross was superbly finished off by Ronaldo.
Napoli started the game better but they could not create anything significant in the first half apart from a long ranger from Insigne. But, in the second half, Napoli made few substitutions and they came out much better and they looked threatening.
On the 72nd minute, substitute Dybala showed his quality. From the corner of the box, his curling effort went straight into the back of the net. In his bad season, this goal will give him a lot of confidence.
Juventus made a few good counter-attacks to extend the margin but in front of the goal, they could not keep their cool. At the 90th-minute mark substitute, Victor Osimhen won a penalty and Insigne scored from the penalty to give his team something from the game.
Notable Performances:
Federico Chiesa(8/10) – (Juventus): He was great in this game. Showed his agility and athleticism. He was the best player on the pitch and produced an outstanding assist for the first goal.
Lorenzo Insigne(7.5/10) – (Napoli): In a very bad performance from Napoli he was only the spark of light in this game. Scored from the penalty as well.
Cristiano Ronaldo(7/10) – (Juventus): Could have opened the deadlock in the 2nd minutes but eventually did with a great finish.
Juventus will play next against Genoa at home in Serie A on Sunday and Napoli will play away to Sampdoria at the same time on Sunday in the league.
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