BEVERLY HILLS, March 21, (THEWILL) –Â The Serie A champions Juventus’ hopes for a tenth successive Serie A Scudetto, which were previously quite slim are now in tatters after they ended their Sunday fixture against relegation-battling Benevento with an absolute gift from Arthur Melo that allowed Argentine striker Adolfo Gaich win it for the visitors.
What was regarded as the battle of the benches between former AC Milan team-mates and now coaches Andrea Pirlo and Filippo Inzaghi remarkably went the way of the latter, as unpredictable as that seemed ahead of the match. That was because Benevento had not won in 11 games before this clash. In that run of matches, they had lost losing six to slump to just above the relegation zone.
Juventus was therefore expected to have it easy, yet it was anything but. And, for the umpteenth time, it raised the question about the readiness of Pirlo for the big time. Although they won the stat figures with a shot count of 21-7 and had 73.4 per cent of possession, a fourth league defeat of the season effectively put paid to any opportunity to realistically challenge for the title.
Even if the hosts had to rejig their squad as Juan Cuadrado sat out a ban with Aaron Ramsey, Alex Sandro, Merih Demiral and Paulo Dybala injured, the quality in the lineup was enough to eke out a result. The decision to bring in Federico Bernardeschi as a left-back with the new all-attack formation that did so well in Cagliari last week was not fruitful on Sunday.
The visitors were also lacking in first team squad members but did not allow that affect their game. Kamil Glik and Pasquale Schiattarella were big losses due to suspension, just as Fabio Depaoli, Iago Falque and Gaetano Letizia were not in the lineup for the victors, but they were rewarded for their battling display in defence and attack.
Juventus star striker Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored a hat-trick in Sardinia in their first game after the embarrassing exit from the UEFA Champions League, was involved in some of the best advances forward but Inzaghi’s charges more than held their own. Ronaldo even had the ball in the net but it was correctly ruled out for offside.
Several times Ronaldo stung goalkeeper Lorenzo Montipo’s gloves but the Man-of-the-Match keeper’s sharp reflexes and acrobatic performances were part of the effective touches of the Benevento game that gave them victory.
As the clock ticked away, Juve became more desperate but their disorganised late rush was all individual moves and no genuine plan to grab a point in the home tie. Their disjointed approach ensured that they could not muster the comeback that could have seen them catch up to Milan in second place this weekend.
It may be too cliche to conclude that the keeper of the victorious underdogs was the standout player of the match but this result came about mostly because Montipo made a series of great saves to deny a desperate Juve. The keeper’s heroic defensive performance and string of crucial saves, particularly from Ronaldo, won the tie.
As a result, Benevento became the first newly promoted side to stay unbeaten in both league matches in Serie A against Juventus since Sampdoria in the 2012/2013 season. It was also their first Serie A victory against a team in the top-three positions of the table at the beginning of the matchday, after seven encounters lost and one draw.
Juve will rue missed chances and believe their alleged penalty that was denied by the video assistant referee (VAR) should have stood but they have no one to blame but themselves. Their director Fabio Paratici admitted post-match that the performance against Benevento was ‘not up to our standards,’ but insisted that manager Andrea Pirlo and Cristiano Ronaldo remain part of their future strategy.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
