02 November 2014
Second-half goals from Andrea Pirlo and Alvaro Morata helped Juventus to a 2-0 win over Empoli last night, extending their unbeaten run against the Azzurri to nine games in the process.
A low key first-half, dominated possession wise by the visitors, then gave way to a brighter restart, with Juventus opening the scoring through Pirlo’s 19th free-kick in Serie A since the start of the 2004/05 campaign on 61 minutes.
With the deadlock broken, Massimiliano Allegri’s team settled into their stride and got the all-important second when Alvaro Morata, making his first league start, smashed home to double his personal tally for the season less than ten minutes later.
The final whistle brought confirmation of the Bianconeri’s seventh league clean sheet of the season and a regained three-point advantage over Roma at the top of the table.
Here is a look at some of the main figures from last night:
Zero
Defeats in the last nine Serie A meetings with Empoli: seven victories, six clean sheets.
Three
Crosses whipped in by Roberto Pereyra, who was recalled to the starting line-up in place of Stephan Lichtsteiner.
Four
Serie A assists so far for Carlos Tevez, who came off the bench to tee up Morata.
Seven
Clean sheets for the Bianconeri in the league this season.
12
Total shots on goal by Empoli, four of which hit the target. Gigi Buffon remained a reassuring presence between the sticks, pulling off a superb second-half save on Manuel Pucciarelli.
57.2
Overall percentage of the ball enjoyed by Juventus, which actually dipped from a first-half high of 60.2.
66
Defensive recoveries made by the visitors, who dug in and shut out an ambitious Empoli side.
68
Leonardo Bonucci’s completed passes, the most precise of the Bianconeri in Tuscany.
