22 June 2020
A penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo and sublime strike by Paulo Dybala saw 10-man Juventus mark their return to Serie A with a win, as they defeated Bologna 2-0 at Renato Dall’Ara Stadium on Monday evening.
FIRST CR7, AND THEN LA JOYA
The opening 20 minutes saw both teams eagerly searching to find their footing, with neither team able to really threaten at goal. Juventus did eventually break the deadlock in the 23rd minute when they were handed a penalty – after a VAR review – when de Ligt was brought down to ground. Cristiano Ronaldo stood up to take the effort and made no mistake in converting past Skorupski. That goal gave Juventus that extra spring of energy and Paulo Dybala doubled the lead with a lovely left-footed effort that curled into the top of the net following a stunning Bernardeschi back-heeled assist. Bologna did try to fight back moments later, when Sansone’s swerving strike went just wide of the post.
RONALDO-BERNA COMBO
The Bianconeri came out hunting for a third goal after the break. Ronaldo and Bernardeschi were teaming up nicely and Berna fed the ball through to the Portuguese, who was open on the left flank. He ran into the box and tried to round the ball past the goalkeeper, but nothing came of it. Seconds later, Bernardeschi came agonizingly close, with a powerful effort that smacked the far post. Sarri was forced into making a substitution in the 65th minute when De Sciglio pulled his hamstring, as he made way for Danilo. Five minutes later, Matuidi and Ramsey were introduced into the mix, replacing Pjanic and Rabiot. Ronaldo then saw his effort go wide of goal, while Douglas Costa came on with ten minutes to spare. The final minutes of the game saw a hard-fought battle ensue between the two sides: Ronaldo had a goal ruled out for offside, before Danilo’s second yellow meant that Juventus ended the game with 10 men. It didn’t impact the final result, as the Bianconeri claimed all three points.
Bologna: Skorupski; Tomiyasu, Danilo, Denswil, Dijks; Svanberg, Medel, Soriano; Orsolini, Barrow, Sansone
Juventus: Szczesny; Cuadrado, De Ligt, Bonucci, De Sciglio (Danilo 64’); Bentancur, Pjanic (Ramsey 70’), Rabiot (Matuidi 70’); Bernardeschi, Dybala (Douglas Costa 80’), Ronaldo
Subs: Pinsoglio, Buffon, Danilo, Rugani, Ramsey, Matuidi, Muratore, Douglas Costa, Olivieri, Vrioni, Zanimacchia
