Vlahovic not enough for Juventus, Lazio in 10 beats Cluj

Juve tie in Europa League, Lazio victorious in conference

A draw and a win for the two Italian teams involved Thursday night in Europe, in the second round of scheduled matches (those with a 9 p.m. kickoff): in the Europa League, Juventus did not go beyond a 1-1 draw at home against Nantes. In the Conference League, on the other hand, a narrow victory for Lazio, 1-0 against Cluj.

As for the Bianconeri’s match, Dusan Vlahovic’s goal, which came in the 13th minute at the conclusion of an action that passed through the feet of Di Maria and Chiesa before finding concretization by the Serbian, was not enough to get the better of the French yellow-greeners: the equalizing goal came in the 61st minute, with Blas good at taking advantage of Mostafa Mohamed’s assist and getting past Szczesny.

There was no shortage of regrets in the Bianconeri’s house, particularly for the woodpeckers hit by Chiesa and Di Maria in the minutes immediately following the equalizer, and for a potential penalty not awarded in full recovery by referee Pinheiro, who after the moviola check on the field decided to award an attacking foul to Bremer amid Juventus protests.

As for the challenge involving Lazio, however, the road immediately seemed uphill when Patric, after just 15 minutes, got himself sent off for denying a clear goal opportunity to Krasniqi with a foul. Removing the chestnuts from the fire, however, was Ciro Immobile, who, in the first half’s recovery, beat Scuffet with a splendid right-footed volley. Strengthened by the lead, the Biancocelesti held on over the next 45 minutes, bringing home an important success ahead of the return leg in Romania.