09 January 2017
New Year, same Old Lady
‘Always start as you mean to go on.’ The Bianconeri certainly took heed from the old adage with a 3-0 win over Bologna that gets them up and running in the best possible fashion for 2017.
This was Juve’s 26th consecutive home success in Serie A – an all-time record in the top tier of Italian football and anyone of a black and white persuasion will be hoping that more pieces of history will follow over the upcoming 12 months.
Sunday night’s was one of the more comfortable victories of the Old Lady’s highly impressive winning streak at Juventus Stadium, which incidentally started against Bologna on 4 October 2015.
Right on the front foot from the word go, Massimiliano Allegri’s men carved out three threatening attempts on goal even before taking a seventh-minute lead through Gonzalo Higuain, and they never looked like surrendering their advantage – which increased courtesy of Paulo Dybala’s penalty shortly before the break and Higuain’s header 10 minutes after it – as the visitors never truly tested Juve stopper Norberto Neto.
With three goals, three points and a clean sheet to boot, the Bianconeri have started 2017 in some style.
Prolific Pipita
Gonzalo Higuain’s night began with him holding aloft the MVP award for December – a recognition of his match-winning performances at the back end of 2016 – and the Argentine already looks determined to lift this month’s prize after hitting two more goals on Sunday.
Pipita has now struck five times in his last three outings in Serie A and he also has four braces to his name since joining Juve in the summer (against Sassuolo, Empoli, Torino and Bologna).
These are highly impressive figures for a man signed for his goal scoring prowess and he’s certainly doing the business in the black and white so far.
Praise for the providers
Few goals in football are ever made without the support of a team-mate or two and the same can be said for both of Higuain’s strikes last night.
Miralem Pjanic, pulling the strings in his seemingly preferred ‘trequartista’ role, played in Pipita for the game’s opener, which now means that the Bosnian has six Serie A assists to his name this season and nine in all competitions.
Meanwhile, Higuain’s second of the evening ended up being one of the most straightforward goals he will score this term thanks to Stephan Lichtsteiner’s pinpoint right-wing cross, hit on a sixpence for Juve’s number 9 to head home with ease.
200 in A for Asa
There was a significant personal milestone on Sunday night for Kwadwo Asamoah, who made his 200th appearance in Serie A.
Were it not for his serious injuries over the last two and a half years, the Ghanaian midfielder would surely have reached this quota considerably earlier, but ‘Asa’ looks determined to make up for lost time, putting in a very solid showing in the left-back slot he is not normally used to playing in.
Good job, Kwadwo!
Winning beginning for Rincon
Unveiled officially as a Juventus player only five days prior, Tomas Rincon did not have to wait long for his first taste of victory with the Bianconeri.
The Venezuelan received a warm reception upon replacing Sami Khedira in the 81st minute of Sunday’s win and he earned yet further appreciation from the fans for an all-action cameo, in which El General gave glimpses of the combative tackling and neat distribution for which the club decided to sign him during this January transfer window.
BienvenidoGeneral!
