Sassuolo 1-2 Juventus: Old Lady tighten grip on fourth spot with late win in Serie A

Moise Kean’s goal two minutes from time secured Juventus victory over Sassuolo which all-but secures a top-four spot for the Bianconeri.

The mid-table hosts were much the better outfit in the first half and the opener from Giacomo Raspadori – which he fired inside Wojciech Szczesny’s near post after running onto Domenico Berardi’s backheel – was just rewards.

Against the run of play the Old Lady got back on level terms in the last minute of the first half from Paolo Dybala’s smart strike which caught Andrea Consigli off-guard. Alvaro Morata seemed to foul Sassuolo full-back Giorgos Kyriakopoulos in the build-up but VAR upheld the goal.

The match seemed destined for a draw before Kean was played through in the left hand side of the area and from a narrow angle Consigli somehow allowed it to sneak under his body and into the net.

The win lifts Juventus eight points clear of fifth place Roma whose chance of catching the Old Lady for the final Champions League berth now looks forlorn. Sassuolo remain in tenth spot.

TALKING POINT

Dubious decision will raise complaints – If we ignore Calciopoli and the other match-fixing scandals in Italian football, the other common complaint would be that big clubs – and often Juventus – get decisions going their way. Sassuolo fans and players will not be the only ones who would believe that if one of their players committed a challenge like Alvaro Morata did before Paulo Dybala’s goal whether the linesman, referee or VAR would have ruled out the equaliser on the stroke of half time.

Jose Mourinho received a two-match ban after telling the referee who officiated their 2-2 draw with Verona “Juventus sent you”. You would hope Mourinho is granted a long time to gather himself before being asked his opinion about this decision.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Wojciech Szczesny (Juventus) – Moise Kean was ultimately the hero but Juventus wouldn’t have been in position to win the game had their keeper not pulled off a number of stops – especially in the first half. The pick of these was his stop from Gianluca Scamacca minutes 11 minutes before the interval. The former Arsenal goalkeeper has received criticism this season but in this key game he was instrumental in victory.

PLAYER RATINGS

Sassuolo: Consigli 7; Muldur 7, Chiricheș 6, Ayhan 7, Kyriakopoulos 7; Lopez 6, Frattesi 6; Traore 7, Raspadori 7, Berardi 7; Scamacca 6.
Subs: Djuricic 6, Defrel 6, Henrique 6.

Juventus: Szczesny 8*; De Sciglio 7, Bonucci 7, Rugani 6, Alex Sandro 6; Zakaria 6, Danilo 6, Bernardeschi 7, Rabiot 6; Dybala 7, Morata 6.
Subs: Chiellini 7, Vlahovic 6, Kean 7, Miretti 6.

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS

34′ FINE STOP FROM SZCZESNY! Mulder drives into the area and slips a ball through to Scamacca in the right hand side of the area. His bullet bound for the top corner is parried away by the keeper.

38′ GOAL FOR SASSUOLO! Berardi’s neat flick put through Raspadori in the left hand side of the area and he drove his effort between Szczesny and the near post.

45′ GOAL FOR JUVENTUS! Hold that half-time dressing down! Dybala showed his class surprising the keeper by taking a shot early and blasting into the roof of the net. Sassuolo certainly had an argument that Morata fouled a defender in the build-up, but the goal stands.

88 GOAL FOR JUVENTUS! Kean with the winner. He was played through in the left hand side of the box but, though he struck his effort well, Consigli really shouldn’t have let the ball squeeze through him from a tight angle.