Juventus 1-0 Fiorentina: Rabiot header earns win

Adrien Rabiot's header was enough to earn Juventus a 1-0 win over Fiorentina that lifted them into the top half of the Serie A table despite some late controversy.

Rabiot scored the winner in the first half of a typically feisty affair between two long-standing rivals at the Allianz Stadium on Sunday, moving the beleaguered Bianconeri up to ninth.

Juve's former Fiorentina pair Dusan Vlahovic and Federico Chiesa started alongside Angel Di Maria for the first time, and the World Cup winner outshone them by teeing up Rabiot's goal in a bright display.

Vlahovic saw an effort chalked off for offside following a VAR review but Juve will feel that decision was evened out when Gaetano Castrovilli saw a stunning late volley disallowed following a similar intervention.

Chances were at a premium during a heated start, before Filip Kostic squandered a couple of decent openings.

Juve made their superiority count after 34 minutes, however.

A teasing ball from Di Maria was met with a firm header by Rabiot, which Pietro Terracciano could not claw away as goal-line technology confirmed it crept in. 

Vlahovic thought he had scored against Fiorentina for the first time since his acrimonious departure last year when he lobbed Terracciano from Kostic's pass, only to be called offside by the tightest of margins.

Vlahovic's replacement Moise Kean was then thwarted by Terracciano soon after entering the fray, before Luka Jovic almost levelled with a glancing header.

Fiorentina were then denied in contentious circumstances one minute from time, a VAR review deeming Luca Ranieri to have been offside before Castrovilli found the bottom-left corner with a thumping volley from range.

What does it mean? Home comforts return for Juve

Juventus' 15-point deduction sent them sliding down the Serie A table last month, and poor home form has not helped their efforts to claw their way into the reckoning for a top-seven finish — and with it, European qualification.

Massimiliano Allegri's men avoided going three home league games without a victory for the first time since 2015 with Sunday's win, while Fiorentina have now won just one of their seven matches in Serie A this calendar year (D2 L4).

Vincenzo Italiano's side will no doubt be irked by the decision to rule out Castrovilli's outstanding strike, with questions over whether the offside Ranieri was impacting the play.

Di Maria impresses

Di Maria did not enjoy the smoothest of transitions upon his arrival in Turin at the start of the season, spending a significant spell on the sidelines before heading to Qatar to aid Argentina's World Cup success.

However, he had Juve's supporters out of their seats with an exciting display here, which included teeing up Rabiot's winner. 

Vlahovic frustrated by former employers

Vlahovic has failed to get one over on his former club since swapping Florence for Turin last January, and he was frustrated by a marginal offside call on Sunday.

The striker has failed to score or provide an assist against the Viola since joining Juventus, having netted 49 times in 108 appearances for his former side.

Key Opta facts

Juventus have collected the most clean sheets in the current Serie A (14) season; the Bianconeri have already got more this term than in all of the 2021-22 campaign (13 in 38 matches).

Rabiot has scored four goals in Serie A this season, meaning he has already equalled his best tally for a single campaign (2020-21, 34 appearances).

No Juventus player has scored more goals at home than Adrien Rabiot this season (all competitions): six, level with Dusan Vlahovic.

Angel Di Maria has been directly involved in four goals in 2023 in Serie A, more than any other Juventus player: two goals scored and two assists for him.

Massimiliano Allegri was taking charge of his 250th Serie A game as Juventus coach.

What's next?

Juventus host Ligue 1 side Nantes in the first leg of their Europa League knockout-round play-off tie on Thursday, while Fiorentina travel to Braga in the Europa Conference League on the same day.