Monday, 7 October 2013
Juventus overcame goals in the first and last minutes from Sulley Muntari to claim a 3-2 victory against archrivals AC Milan in Turin on Sunday.
Juve, looking to move back within two points of Serie A
leaders AS Roma, suffered an immediate setback when Muntari scored the
fastest goal of the season so far after just 19 seconds.
But goals from Andrea Pirlo and substitute Sebastian
Giovinco—who scored within a minute of his introduction—turned matters
around for Antonio Conte’s side with 20 minutes remaining.
Milan defender Philippe Mexes was shown a red card
following a foul on Giovinco and subsequent display of dissent in an
indiscretion that was compounded when Pirlo hit the bar with the
subsequent free-kick and Giorgio Chiellini powered home the rebound.
Juventus looked comfortable from that point onward until
Muntari scored a deflected second in the final minute of normal time,
but when Cristian Zapata headed over from a corner in the fourth and
final minute of extra time, Conte and his men were finally able to
celebrate.
Not for the first time this season, Juventus found
themselves behind in a league encounter—but this time it took just 19
seconds. AC Milan kicked off and immediately pressed forward, with the
ball eventually making its way to Robinho on the edge of the box.
The Brazilian unleashed a truly terrible attempt on goal
but one that worked as a perfect pass to Muntari, who was lingering at
the far post. Played on by the inattentive Asamoah, Muntari hit a
first-time shot that caught Buffon by surprise and beat him at his near
post.
The goal was not symptomatic of an impressive start to the
contest, as from that moment both sides struggled to find their rhythm.
Carlos Tevez showed some threat in attack, but Christian Abbiati was
just about equal to any long-range attempts Juventus managed.
In the end, it was a former Milan player who grabbed the
equaliser. After Tevez was fouled in the middle of the pitch about 25
yards out, Pirlo duly stepped up and curled a beautiful free-kick that
beat the wall and Abbiati—although replays showed the goalkeeper perhaps
should have kept it out.
Juventus, while marginally superior, continued to struggle
to create clear-cut opportunities from open play, not helped by Arturo
Vidal’s uncharacteristically subpar display. But the second half
introduction of Paul Pogba seemed to change matters, as the Frenchman
moved to right wing-back and proceeded to offer his side’s best
attacking outlet.
It was Conte’s second substitute, however, who would give
Juve the lead. Brought on in the 68th minute, Giovinco needed barely a
minute to receive the ball on the edge of the box, showing remarkable
poise to slip around Zapata’s challenge and fire an off-balance shot
beyond Abbiati.
It was a moment of sublime skill to break the draw.
It soon got even better for Juventus. Giovinco was again at
the heart of matters, wriggling free of Mexes’ attention 30 yards out
and being brought down by the Frenchman. Mexes was booked for the foul
but made the mistake of telling the referee exactly what he thought of
the decision—earning an immediate second yellow and his marching orders.
Pirlo immediately stepped up and curled another great dead
ball, although this one ricocheted away off the crossbar. Fortunately
Chiellini was perfectly placed to prod home the rebound.
Milan boss Massimiliano Allegri reacted to those twin
setbacks by withdrawing the ineffectual Robinho for a defender,
Christian Zaccardo, in perhaps an indication of his hopes for a
comeback.
But Milan did halve the deficit, with Muntari getting his
second after robbing Pogba 35 yards out and unleashing a wicked drive
that deflected into the bottom corner.
There was just time for one more chance but when Zapata’s desperate
header veered wildly over a crossbar, Milan’s hopes of a point they
would not have warranted were finally ended.
Marco Luzzani/Getty Images
