For the second time in less than a week, an early Vlahovic free-kick was the most spectacular moment of their game. Juventus did enough to get over the line against well-organised opponents.
Spezia indeed held their own against often passive hosts, but a distinct lack of nous in and around the Juve area meant they rarely threatened to equalise.
It wasn’t pretty, but Allegri won’t mind – the Bianconeri are back on track with a win and remain unbeaten this term.
Starting lineup:
JUVENTUS (4-3-3): Wojciech Szczesny;
Danilo, Federico Gatti, Bremer, Mattia De Sciglio;
Fabio Miretti, Manuel Locatelli, Adrien Rabiot;
Juan Cuadrado, Dusan Vlahovic, Moise Kean.
SUBS: Mattia Perin, Carlo Pinsoglio, Matias Soule, Arkadiusz Milik, Filip Kostic, Daniele Rugani, Denis Zakaria, Nicolo Fagioli, Angel Di Maria, Weston McKennie, Alex Sandro.
SPEZIA (3-5-2): Bartlomiej Dragowski;
Dimitris Nikolaou, Petko Hristov, Jakub Kiwior;
Emil Holm, Viktor Kovalenko, Mehdi Bourabia, Simone Bastoni, Arkadiusz Reca;
Emmanuel Gyasi, M’Bala Nzola.
SUBS: Jeroen Zoet, Petar Zovko, Jacopo Sala, Aimar Sher, David Strelec, Mattia Caldara, Julius Beck, Kevin Agudelo, Sanca, Mikael Egill Ellertsson.
Goals:
JUVE LEAD! Incredibly, Vlahovic repeats his free-kick heroics from the weekend, as the Serb striker steps up to a 25-yard free-kick and curls it into the top-right corner with an unstoppable shot! What a strike! Juve 1-0 Spezia!
MILIK MAKES IT TWO! Making another meaningful impact, Miretti pops up on the right flank and fires in a low cross, which rolls dangerously through the area. Milik takes control – neatly turning Hristov and then firing home from near the penalty spot! 2-0 to Juventus, and that’s game over!
So, what’s next?
After facing Fiorentina in Serie A on Saturday – and they are sure to receive a hostile ‘welcome’ at Stadio Artemio Franchi upon Vlahovic’s latest return – Juventus then visit Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League next week. Spezia, meanwhile, hosts Bologna on Sunday.
