Udinese stun toothless Juve in Serie A
Juventus are seemingly out of the race for the Serie A title, as they sank to a shock 1-0 home defeat to Udinese.
Juventus manager Maurizio Sarri has “demanded continuity” from his players after they squandered a two-goal lead and succumbed to a 3-3 draw against Sassuolo on Wednesday at the Mapei Stadium. However, with 77 points, they still stand seven points clear of Atlanta at the top of the Serie A points table.
“A coach demands continuity from his team and at this moment we struggle to maintain it, both from a physical and mental point of view: we had very good moments that alternated with difficult moments. It should also be said that we are facing teams that arrive in great shape, such as Atalanta and Sassuolo. We have to solve the problem of these ups and downs,” Sarri was quoted as saying on the official website of Juventus.
“At times we give the impression of having very high potential, and at other times we seem more vulnerable. After the 2-0, we should have kept Sassuolo in their half of the pitch by holding possession. We, on the other hand, wanted to tear too much, and we widened the spaces. Now we must not do calculations and think game by game,” he added.
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With the strike of Danilo in the fifth minute, Juventus took a lead which was extended by Gonzalo Higuain in the 12th minute. However, the home team returned one back when Filip Djuricic scored at the half-hour mark.
After the break, Sassuolo shook Juventus at the core and took a lead with two goals in four minutes. After Domenico Berardi curled a free-kick into the back of Juventus net in the 50th minute, Francesco Caputo blasted in another one past the touring keeper Wojciech Szczęsny.
Desperate to save themselves from an embarrassment, Juventus went all guns blazing in the remaining minutes of the game. Their efforts paid dividends as Alex Sandro netted an equaliser in the 64th minute.
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