Vlahovic not enough, Juve caught up in derby and sixth in standings
The derby della Mole ends 2-2 at the end of a surreal evening, which began an hour late due to tensions outside the stadium: the Bianconeri ultras had threatened to prevent the match from taking place after one of their own was injured in pre-match clashes. In the end, however, it was mostly the Granata who celebrated, while Spalletti’s team, already aware during the second half of being out of the next Champions League, left the field amid regrets and disappointment.
Torino started off aggressively, dragged by their public and by a clear strategy: to often seek depth to surprise the Juventus defense, especially on the right flank where Pedersen put Cambiaso in trouble. Juve responded with virtually man-to-man markings on the Granata defenders and with McKennie in the usual hybrid role between offensive three-quarter and outside containment. The Bianconeri initially appeared nervous also due to the long delay of the kickoff, committing several technical errors.
As the minutes passed, however, Spalletti’s team grew and found more and more spaces in the central area of the field. After a few chances built by Boga and Vlahovic, the lead arrived in the 24th minute. The action stems from the Kalulu-Thuram axis: the Frenchman runs along ball and foot over twenty meters unopposed and serves Vlahovic in the box. The Serbian sends Ismajli out of time with a feint and concludes by also finding Ebosse’s decisive deflection. Torino reacted little and the only real danger for Perin came from a violent volley by Gineitis that grazed the far post.
In the second half, D’Aversa inserted Casadei in place of Gineitis and Torino seemed to restart better, but Juve struck again. On the counterattack, finished by Conceiçao, it was again Vlahovic who beat Paleari with a precise diagonal shot. For the Serbian striker, that’s four goals in the last four games, numbers that reinforce Spalletti’s will to convince the club to renew his contract.
Down by two goals, however, Toro did not give up. Casadei reopened the derby on the development of a corner, anticipating Cambiaso and beating Perin. D’Aversa then plays it all by inserting Njie and switching to an offensive trident. The choice is rewarded once again by a corner kick: Casadei forces Perin to clear and Adams, in the heart of the area, finds the tap-in of the final 2-2. The derby thus ends amidst an explosion of Granata joy and deep reflections in the Juventus household, out of the top four in the league for the first time in fifteen years.
