Juventus 0-3 Lazio: Aquile in Seventh Heaven as Danes Invade Turin
Lazio consolidated what has been a historic start to the season by smashing three unanswered goals past Juventus at the Allianz Stadium.
Juventus & Lazio Starting Lineups
Luciano Spalletti expectedly made a host of changes to the Juventus lineup that beat Celta Vigo on Thursday. Randal Kolo Muani spearheaded the 3-4-2-1 formation, supported by Nico Gonzalez and Kerim Alajbegovic, while Douglas Luiz and Pape Sarr combined in the double pivot.
Weston McKennie and Zeki Celik occupied the full-back slots, with Pierre Kalulu, Gleison Bremer, and Jhon Lucumi forming the back-three in front of Guglielmo Vicario.
On the other hand, Gennaro Gattuso only swapped Danilho Doekhi for Josip Sutalo while keeping the rest of the 4-3-3 lineup intact. Romano Floriani Mussolini, Oliver Provstgaard, and Nuno Tavares completed the backline. In midfield, Reda Belahyane operated between Kenneth Taylor and Davide Frattesi. In attack, Tijjani Noslin was flanked by Gustav Isaksen and Lazio captain Mattia Zaccagni.
First Half Starts With End-to-End Action
The two sides didn’t waste any time testing the waters, as they immediately got the action going. But while the first half was filled with half-chances, major goal-scoring opportunities were scarce.
Lazio made the first moves, threatening through Zaccagni and Tavares. At the other end of the pitch, Kolo Muani was able to pick up Gonzalez between the crowds, but Christos Mandas was thankful for the Argentine’s poor connection.
Oliver Provstgaard Opens His Lazio Account
In the 37th minute, the Biancocelesti broke the deadlock through Provstgaard, who scored his first goal for the club. After playing a corner kick, Zaccagni received the ball again on the left wing. The skipper had an easy passing option in Belahyane, but he opted to send the cross to the box himself despite being under pressure.
Provstgaard then escaped Bremer’s marking and made a slight, yet vital connection with his head, allowing the ball to sail to the corner past the helpless Vicario.
Before the interval, Tavares almost doubled Lazio’s lead as his shot took a major deflection off Bremer’s foot before ricocheting off the woodwork.
Gustav Isaksen Ends Juve’s Second-Half Revival
After the half-time break, Juventus introduced Nick Woltemade to add depth in the final third. The move initially paid off with the Bianconeri retaking the initiative, but the German striker was guilty of wasting a golden chance after fine work from Kolo Muani down the left flank. This proved to be Juve’s best chance of the game, as they swiftly faded to mediocrity once again.
In the 66th minute, Tavares found Isaksen with a sublime horizontal cross with his weaker right foot. The Danish winger cut past Zelik before finding the far corner with a clinical shot.
Fisayo Dele-Bashiru Finishes Off Juventus
The Old Lady’s misery wasn’t over yet, as the visitors made it 3-0 before the 90th minute. Fisayo Dele-Bashiru played a give-and-go with fellow substitute Andrea Pinamonti inside his own half before embarking on a daring run towards Vicario’s penalty box to put the match to bed with a simple finish.
Lazio have thus reunited with Inter Milan at the Serie A summit after collecting 19 points from a possible 21 in what has been an incredible start for Gattuso’s reign.
Juventus 0-3 Lazio
Goalscorers: 37′ Provstgaard, 66′ Isaksen, 89′ Dele-Bashiru
Juventus (3-4-2-1): Vicario; Kalulu, Bremer, Lucumí; Celik (Cambiaso from 74′), Douglas Luiz (Zhegrova from 67′), Sarr (Boga from 87′), McKennie; Nico Gonzalez (Conceicao from 67′), Alajbegovic (Woltemade from 46′); Kolo Muani.
Lazio (4-3-3): Mandas; Floriani, Sutalo, Provstgaard, Nuno Tavares; Frattesi, Belahyane, Taylor (Dele-Bashiru from 69′); Isaksen (Lazzari from 79′), Noslin (Pinamonti from 69′), Zaccagni (Pedraza from 85′).
Referee: Davide Massa (Imperia section); Linesmen: Alassio – Berti; Fourth official: Maresca; VAR: Meraviglia; AVAR: Aureliano.
Yellow cards: 41′ Taylor (L), 48′ Zaccagni (L)
