Juventus moved to third place in Serie A with a convincing 0-2 win over Sampdoria at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Saturday afternoon. Cristiano Ronaldo did not add to his 15 goal tally but strikes from Federico Chiesa and substitute Aaron Ramsey were enough to get them past Samp.
It was Sampdoria who gave Andrea Pirlo the perfect start to his top-flight managerial career. Juventus started the campaign with a 3-0 win, but both sides have had similar returns from their recent outings. Claudio Ranieri has put their poor start behind, and his charges looked to avoid a repeat at home.
The game marked the midway point of the 2020-21 Serie A campaign, with both Samp and Old Lady having had three wins from their last four outings. The hosts were clear underdogs against the much-fancied Juventus and that showed in the result and attitudes of the players. The quality of Juventus was too much for Ranieri’s men, who controlled the proceedings.
There was a ten-point difference between Serie A leaders Milan and Juventus in fourth place but Andrea Pirlo’s men reduced the deficit to seven points thanks to a goal from Federico Chiesa in the first half and Aaron Ramsey’s strike in the second. Meanwhile, the hosts lost their cool and earned cautions from Michael Fabbri.
Both sides started with aplomb, but it was the travelers who would trouble the scorers. With Cristiano Ronaldo holding the defenders’ attention in the middle, Alvaro Morata ran on the right flank. His pass into the box was met by Federico Chiesa, who left his marker behind with his run into the box. It was an easy connection with the ball, and Emil Audero never had a chance of stopping it.
Following Chiesa’s strike, three Sampdoria players would be cautioned in the next ten minutes. As the minutes progressed, they would try their luck on goal but would gas out. This allowed Ronaldo two good opportunities on goal, but the Portuguese could not get on the scoreboard.
Going into the break, the score would remain the same. Coming out of it, Sampdoria were the more threatening of the two sides. Fabio Quagliarella could have delivered the perfect gift for the home fans on the eve of his 38th birthday but could not test Wojciech Szczesny in the 55th minute. In the very next minute, Alvaro Morata hit the back of the net, but the goal was ruled offside. The 57th minute saw Quagliarella again in action winning a corner from a blocked shot by the Polish goalkeeper.
Regulation time would keep the score same, and the Old Lady would strike again in added time. With Sampdoria going forward searching for an equalizer, Pirlo’s men would hit them on the counter. Ronaldo was key again, providing the pass that released Juan Cuadrado on the right flank. The Colombian squared the ball for Ramsey inside the box, and the Welshman made it 2-0.
It was all over four minutes later, Juve returning to Turin with the three points on offer. They leapfrogged Roma to take third place and moved within two points of Inter in second. Meanwhile, Sampdoria will continue to stay in the top half of the table irrespective of Benevento, the closest challengers, securing an upset win against Antonio Conte’s title challengers.