03 December 2022
Juventus returned to winning ways by maintaining their 100% record at rivals Inter. The Women's Derby d'Italia was decided by a quick double at the start of the second half. The opening goal was scored by Babara Bonansea on 50'. Two minutes later Arianna Caruso added a second.
At the other end of the pitch, whenever the Nerazzurre penetrated the Juve defence, they were unable to beat an immense Pauline Peyraud-Magnin, assisted by the frame of her goal.
An important victory in light of the UWCL showdown with Arsenal in midweek it was also the 100th Bianconere win in Serie A and a memorable milestone for a certain midfield stalwart.
THE MATCH
A bright opening 30 minutes despite the bleak conditions in Milan. In the December rain, the Bianconere took the game to their rivals.
Lineth Beerensteyn, constantly switching wings with Barbara Bonansea, was the first to bring the Inter goalkeeper Francesca Durante into action, when she needed two attempts to control the Dutch winger's effort. Bonansea also tested the keeper, whose save almost fell at the feet of Cristiana Girelli.
Having celebrated her first Serie A goal last week, Julia Grosso was eager to find the net in back to back games. Her first effort on 19 minutes went just over the bar. Nine minutes later, a shot aimed at the top corner was tipped away by Durante. Their duel would not end there.
In the closing 10 minutes of the opening period it was Inter that were the more dangerous. Pauline Peyraud-Magnin rose to the challenge. Ghoutia Karchouni found a channel inside the Juve area and released a shot which Peyraud-Magnin diverted onto the crossbar. The rebound fell to Grosso, whose clearance bounced off an opponent, almost looping over the Juve keeper into the net.
Two minutes later, again Peyraud-Magnin displayed all her class, when a cross travelled the breadth of the area to reach Marta Pandini. The Inter winger raced onto the ball only for her close-range shot to be blocked by the Bianconere shot stopper. Compounding the negative moment was an injury to Martina Rosucci, replaced by Linda Sembrant.
Juventus responded, creating the last chance of the first half. Another powerful run and left foot shot from Grosso was once again tipped wide by Durante.
The second half started with chances at either end and it was clear the match would not finish goalless.
First Bonansea struck a close range effort straight at Durante. Seconds later at the other end, Inter hit the frame of the goal for the second time in the match when Tatania Bonetti slid in to meet a cross but could only deflect her shot onto the post.
Then on 50’ the breakthrough. Grosso quickly picked out Girelli, who rolled an inch-perfect pass into the path of Bonansea. The number 11 skipped away from the Nerazzurre defence and drilled her shot across the face of goal beyond Durante.
Two minutes later it was the other winger, Beerensteyn who did the damage for the sucker punch. Picking up the same position as Bonansea, the forward latched onto a loose pass from the ruffled hosts and although her shot was deflected, it fell on the path of Caruso, who slammed the ball home.
Juve were in no mood to let Inter straight back into the match. Peyraud-Magnin produced important saves to deny first Karchouni, then Nchout Ajara, before deflecting Polli’s effort onto the crossbar.
It was not all one-way traffic, however. With her tireless running, Beerensteyn was the main thorn in the Inter flank. Twice goal-bound shots were deflected off target by last-ditch Inter defending.
Juventus held Inter at bay for the remaining minutes to notch up another clean sheet but more importantly add three points to their Serie A tally before next week's top of the table meeting with Roma.
POST-MATCH COMMENTS
JOE MONTEMURRO
"Today I liked the team a lot because they found that attitude that hadn't always been seen in the last few games. I'm proud of the girls, who worked really well this week. Rosucci? We'll evaluate the situation, but during the match it's important that whoever is on the pitch can give 100%. I thank Martina for being honest and allowing us to make the switch at the right time. The next few weeks? We do this job exactly for times like these. Playing against a big team like Inter, then going to London and then coming back and going to Rome, I think that in these matches, in these moments, you can see the level of the team. I am enthusiastic, this pressure will bring out the best in us."
BARBARA BONANSEA
"We are very happy for today's victory because as a team we wanted it at all costs. It was a peculiar week because when you draw and you see the first team in the table pull away it's never pleasant. We set out to reverse the tide. I don't think it's the case that we play better against the strongest teams because even the matches we played against teams that currently occupy a middle and lower position we faced them with the same mentality and spirit. We were simply less clinical in front of goal and today. Instead, today we got the result we wanted. We are Juventus and everyone expects a lot from us, always. And we are all aware of our strengths and our worth. We're going home happy and from tomorrow we'll start thinking about another very important match, on Wednesday night against Arsenal."
INTER 0-2 JUVENTUS WOMEN (HT: 0-0)
SCORERS: 50′ Bonansea (J), 52’ Caruso (J).
INTER: Durante; Sonstevold, Van der Gragt, Kristhansdottir, Robustellini; Santi, Pandini (46′ Chawinga), Mihashi (57′ Dragoni), Karchouni (84‘ Marinelli); Bonetti (57′ Nchout Ajara), Polli. Subs not used: Belli, Brustia, Merlo, Alborghetti, Simonetti. Coach: Guarino.
JUVENTUS: Peyraud-Magnin; Lenzini, Rosucci (39′ Sembrant), Salvai, Boattin; Caruso, Pedersen, Grosso (69‘ Cernoia), Bonansea (84‘ Bonfantini), Girelli, Beerensteyn (84‘ Cantore). Subs not used: Aprile, Lundorf, Duljan, Gunnarsdóttir, Zamanian. Coach: Montemurro.
Referee: Di Graci.
BOOKINGS: 82′ Sembrant (J), 89′ Robustellini (I).
