08 May 2015
The Primavera consolidated fourth position in the domestic standings following a 4-1 victory away at lowly Modena on Friday afternoon.
Despite going behind to Riccardo Ferrari’s opener after only 180 seconds at the Stadio Venturelli, Fabio Grosso’s charges hit back eight minutes later through a Simone Muratore strike.
Determined to build on their superiority following the equaliser, Juventus’ first-half blitz was completed thanks to Francesco Cassata’s finish and a brace from King Paul Udoh.
Today’s victory takes the Bianconeri to 50 points in the league, meaning they can no longer be caught by fifth-placed Sampdoria who travel to Fiorentina on Saturday.
If Spezia were to lose their next two games against Pro Vercelli and Sampdoria respectively, a triumph for Juventus in their final game of the season at home to Parma on 16 May would see them leapfrog the Liguria-based outfit into third position.
Should this situation arise, Grosso’s troops would be able to play both of their playoff encounters for June's Final Round on home soil. Furthermore, the eight clubs who will take part in this qualification stage of the competition are to be paired in four quarter-finals and two semi-finals to be played over the course of two days.
The format is as follows:
QF 1: Best third-placed side v Second best fifth-placed side
QF 2: Best fourth-placed side v Second best fourth-placed side
QF 3: Second best third-placed side v Best fifth-placed side
QF 4: Third best third-placed side v Third best fourth-placed side
SF: QF1 winner v QF3 winner
SF: QF2 winner v QF4 winner
If the regular season were to end now, Juventus would play Sicilian outfit Catania, currently fourth in Group C.
The playoffs will begin in two weeks’ time, with the top two in each group already qualified for the competition’s Final Round in Liguria from 6 to 16 June.
