29 August 2020
Juventus Women return home and the match at Vinovo is rich of many twists and turns. In order to beat a very dangerous Empoli, besides the usual quality, a great does of determination and hunger for success is needed. And, coolness. The match-winning goal, in fact, arrives in stoppage time and it is Cristiana Girelli who scores it. It's the 4-3 goal, after a Bonansea brace and another Girelli goal (once again on penalty) for the Bianconere and goals from Acuti, Polli and Prugna for Empoli.
LEVEL AT THE BREAK
The first half ends 1-1. Juventus opens the scoring on the 13' thanks to a marvellous Barbara Bonansea goal, who managed to connect splendidly from a perfect cross by Lisa Boattin. Empoli, however, do not give up and find the equaliser before the break: Glionna plays it brilliantly from the right side of the pitch and crosses it in for Acuti who makes it 1-1. It's a cold shower for a Juve who more than once went close to scoring a second goal, and, with seconds to go at the end of the first half sees Fedele neutralise a beautifully hit shot by Arianna Caruso.
CRISTIANA'S COOLNESS
A more aggressive Juventus comes out in the second half, preventing Empoli from creating any decent chances for 7 minutes. When the Tuscans find space, however, they take the lead. First Giuliani makes a top save, then she cannot avoid Polli's goal from corner kick action. On the 52' Empoli are 2-1 up. The Bianconere don't give up, they resume with even more hunger and fix things immediately: on the 54' Bonansea receives an assist from Staskova and levels the game, then, on the 58' Girelli wins and scores a penalty to make it 3-2. It all seems done, but the surprises aren't over. On the 85' another penalty, this time for Empoli: Prugna doesn't miss. Another response is needed, another time from Cristiana Girelli, who transforms the winning penalty on the 93’, giving the Bianconere three important points.
THE POST-MATCH COMMENTS
«A game played to the last minute against a team that up until that moment deserved the draw – comments coach Guarino –. They fought on every ball, showing a good level of football and important players. These are three very important points; the level increases and winning the Scudetto will be more and more difficult».
«This is a win that shows we have character. The group’s strength and hunger was what made the difference today – the analysis of Cristiana Girelli –. Empoli made it difficult for us, just like last year. They’re an organised team, but we also played a good game. The 1-1 probably came during our best moment, then the second half was a completely different match. This win needs to help us in the future, we’ve seen that league this year will be even more competitive and it will be harder to win games».
