NEW HERO: KENAN YILDIZ DOUBLE SEALS WIN AMID VLAHOVIC INJURY SCARE
Kenan Yildiz scored twice to lead Juventus to a 2-1 comeback win against Cagliari. The crucial victory was overshadowed by a first-half muscle injury to star striker Dusan Vlahovic.
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Kenan Yildiz led Juventus to a 2-1 win against Cagliari with two goals, but Dusan Vlahovic had to leave the game due to a muscle injury.
Juventus got back on track after three straight draws by defeating Bodo/Glimt 3-2 in the Champions League earlier this week. Vlahovic and Yildiz were back in the starting lineup. Federico Gatti and Michele Di Gregorio weren't in top shape, and Daniele Rugani, Gleison Bremer, Arek Milik, and Carlo Pinsoglio were also injured. Cagliari hadn't won since September 19 but had drawn away games against Udinese and Como after an exciting 3-3 game against Genoa. Yerry Mina, Luca Mazzitelli, Marko Rog, Ze Pedro, and Andrea Belotti didn't travel with the team.
Early on, Marco Palestra tried to foul Filip Kostic in the box but was called for pulling his shirt. Later, his counterattack was deflected by Teun Koopmeiners.
Palestra was a constant worry for Juventus. He set up the first goal by stealing the ball from Kostic and passing it back from the byline. Sebastiano Esposito and Manuel Locatelli both went for the ball near the goal.
Right after the game restarted, Juventus tied the score. Khephren Thuram won the ball in midfield and passed it to Yildiz, who scored from about 14 yards out.
Vlahovic then took a shot that tested Elia Caprile, but he injured his muscle during the play and was replaced by Jonathan David.
Francisco Conceicao's header went straight to Caprile, and Weston McKennie missed a half-volley. But near the end of the first half, Juventus took the lead.
McKennie flicked the ball to Pierre Kalulu, who passed it to Yildiz. Yildiz got past two defenders and scored in the corner of the net.
In the second half, Conceicao missed a chance after a pass from David. Koopmeiners' shot went just wide after a pass from Conceicao.
Riyad Idrissi then forced a save from Mattia Perin after a great pass from Esposito.
Conceicao later shot over the bar and then hit another shot right at the goalkeeper.
Near the end of the game, Cagliari wanted a handball penalty when Fabio Miretti blocked Gennaro Borrelli's header, but it looked like the ball hit the Cagliari player’s hand.
THE MCTOMINAY VOID: WHY NAPOLI STATISTICALLY STRUGGLE WHENEVER THEIR SCOTTISH STAR IS SIDELINED
With Scott McTominay sidelined by tendon inflammation, Napoli relied on a late Lukaku strike to keep their top-four hopes alive.
Napoli finally got a win without Scott McTominay, thanks to a wild stoppage-time goal against bottom-of-the-table Hellas Verona on Saturday. It’s the first time all season they’ve managed a victory without him.
McTominay missed his fourth straight game for Gli Azzurri. He’s been out since aggravating an injury in that 3-2 win over Genoa back on February 7. Right now, Napoli aren’t taking any risks with their star midfielder. He’s still dealing with tendon inflammation between his hamstring and groin, which has kept him from really training at full speed.
There’s talk in Italy that McTominay could be back for the Torino match on Friday. Scotland manager Steve Clarke has his fingers crossed, hoping his 29-year-old midfielder will be fit in time for friendlies against Japan and the Ivory Coast later this month. That’s when Scotland’s World Cup prep really kicks off.
Napoli have looked lost without McTominay. They hadn’t won any of the four games he missed, including a 1-0 loss to Torino back in October when he was out with an ankle strain.
But they finally broke that bad run in Verona. Romelu Lukaku came off the bench and buried a huge winner in the 95th minute, after Jean-Daniel Akpa Akpro had cancelled out Rasmus Hojlund’s early goal for Napoli.
The win keeps Napoli third in Serie A. They’re 14 points behind Inter Milan, so the title is probably out of reach, but they’re still fighting for a Champions League spot.
McTominay wasn’t the only Scot involved. There were actually two Scotland internationals on the pitch at the Marcantonio Bentegodi Stadium. Kieron Bowie played the whole game for Verona and nearly put his team ahead just minutes before Lukaku’s winner. The former Hibs man, who netted his old club a £7 million transfer fee in January, got on the end of a deep cross. Napoli’s keeper Alex Meret missed it, but Bowie, stretching at a tight angle, couldn’t steer the ball home. It rolled right across the empty goal.
Things went from bad to worse for Bowie. Moments later, he was marking Lukaku in the Verona box. The Belgian shrugged him off and slotted in the winning goal. Another tough blow for Verona, who are now bottom of the table, nine points from safety with 11 games left, and they’ve played a game more than everyone they’re chasing.
Billy Gilmour also got a run for Napoli, coming on with Lukaku in the 73rd minute. He earned praise from the Italian media for giving Napoli a late boost. This was only his second appearance off the bench since coming back from nearly four months out with a groin injury. He also played in the 2-2 draw against Roma on February 15.
THE DE ROSSI EFFECT: CAN THE ROMA LEGEND SAVE GENOA FROM SERIE A RELEGATION?
Daniele De Rossi admits Inter Milan were the superior side after Genoa's 2-0 loss, but remains confident in Serie A survival.
Daniele De Rossi didn’t sugarcoat things after Genoa’s 2-0 loss to Inter. “We have to accept Inter are just better than us,” he said. Even so, he still believes Genoa can fight its way out of the relegation mess.
Genoa had just beaten Torino 3-0 and came into San Siro riding that high, but facing the Serie A leaders was always going to be a whole different challenge.
Inter pulled ahead thanks to a ridiculous bit of skill: Federico Dimarco volleyed in Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s chipped pass, and it was one of those goals you just have to applaud. Later, Hakan Calhanoglu made it 2-0 from the penalty spot after Alex Amorim’s handball.
De Rossi wanted more from his team. “We let in the second goal while we were pushing for the equaliser," he told Sky Sport Italia. “Honestly, I’m not happy with how we played. Sure, Inter are the best team in the league, but we didn’t do enough to make things difficult for them. I knew we’d need to be perfect to get a result here. We didn’t show up just to lose, but sometimes you just have to admit when the other side is better.”
Genoa have clawed their way out of the relegation zone with some good results lately, but even solid performances haven’t been enough against teams like Lazio, Napoli, and now Inter.
“Our spot in the table still isn’t great, but there’s a lot of football left,” De Rossi said. “I think we’re heading in the right direction, and we’ve got what it takes to get out of trouble. Just look at how we played against Lazio and Napoli.”
Since taking over from Patrick Vieira on November 6, De Rossi has led the team to five wins, six draws, and six defeats in Serie A.
“I’ve got a picture in my head of the team I want us to become, but time isn’t really on our side. The transfer window’s closed, so we work with what we have. Still, we’re making progress. These guys give me hope,” De Rossi finished.
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