A Paulo Dybala scorcher and late Moise Kean nutmeg turned around the Giacomo Raspadori opener, as Juventus beat Sassuolo to close within a point of third-placed Napoli.
The Bianconeri were decimated by injuries and illness, with Matthijs de Ligt only fit for the bench, Dusan Vlahovic rested after the Coppa Italia semi-final, Juan Cuadrado, Arthur Melo, Manuel Locatelli, Kaio Jorge and Federico Chiesa injured. Sassuolo missed Jeremy Toljan and Pedro Obiang, but Domenico Berardi returned after he was ruled out of the surprise defeat with Cagliari.
The Neroverdi won 2-1 in Turin in October, but their only ever home victory against Juventus was in 2015, when Max Allegri was again on the visitors’ bench.
Giacomo Raspadori, who has been heavily linked with a move to Juve, shrugged off two defenders for a curler that skimmed the far top corner from the edge of the box.
Davide Frattesi’s header on a corner was inches over the bar and Domenico Berardi stung Wojciech Szczesny’s gloves with a scorcher.
Frattesi made a decisive block from close range on Paulo Dybala, but Szczesny was again called into action by a ferocious Gianluca Scamacca strike from a tricky angle.
The Sassuolo goal had been coming and arrived after a long passing move, which saw Berardi’s back-heel flick on the Kyriakopoulos through ball to send Raspadori clear for a powerful angled drive.
Juventus equalised on the stroke of half-time when Morata robbed Kyriakopoulos in a touchline tussle that Sassuolo felt was a foul, setting up Dybala for a fantastic left-foot strike into the roof of the net from a tricky angle.
It was very nearly 1-2 straight after the restart, Andrea Consigli with a spectacular reaction save to claw Morata’s header out from under the bar on a corner.
At the other end, Mert Muldur stung Szczesny’s gloves again, Scamacca booked for trying to score on the rebound with his arm.
Morata spun round to drill just wide, as did Kyriakopoulos, while Moise Kean tested Consigli from point-blank range and Szczesny was almost caught out by a deflected Scamacca attempt.
It was Juventus who snatched a winner in the final minute. Leonardo Bonucci’s long ball over the top was knocked down, Moise Kean turned Vlad Chiriches with his body and drilled between Consigli’s legs at the near post.
Sassuolo 1-2 Juventus
Raspadori 39 (S), Dybala 45 (J), Kean 89 (J)
Oh there’ll be some upset people on here soon. Send in the clowns….
Lol well I’m happy as hell. Forza Juve, would love third haha
The problem with Juve winning is that’ll justify Allegri’s awful football.
It’s worrying how many average teams are at the summit of Serie A.
Man the first guy must have been opening the champagne thinking it was the greatest spectacle on earth.
Juve at least get 20 M cash back from Viola for Vlaflopic
@azzkikr – Vlahovic is not a flop he just plays for Allegri at the moment and unfortunately that is where strikers and attacking football come to die !
Vlahovic isn’t a flop.
Only few would say that Vlahovic would not do well before he arrived. The fact that he has only scored 6 goals out of 15 games with Juve should project well around 10 goals which is less than 50% goals he scored during his Viola spell. Had he not been here, then it was Kean who will starts and no one should doubt that he would score as many as 6 goals of Vlahovic…because he scored 4 already before winter…with few start, more as subs
Loved that all goals scored was lefties
😎😎😎
Why Vlahovic over Kean, no disrespect to Vlahovic, but Ringo is correct, Kean would have scored as many if not more. Another Italian warming the bench….Rispadori will see the same fate if he goes to Juve.