{"id":718,"date":"2025-03-04T10:52:54","date_gmt":"2025-03-04T10:52:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.matteocoachperformance.it\/?p=718"},"modified":"2025-03-04T10:52:54","modified_gmt":"2025-03-04T10:52:54","slug":"juventus-get-response-they-needed-vs-verona-pull-within-six-points-of-serie-a-lead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.matteocoachperformance.it\/?p=718","title":{"rendered":"Juventus get response they needed vs. Verona, pull within six points of Serie A lead"},"content":{"rendered":"


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The last five days have been a little crazy for Juventus. <\/p>\n

The aftermath of Wednesday\u2019s elimination from the Coppa Italia at the hands of lowly Empoli have been wild ones, full of rumors around the future of the manager, complete with the ultras pitching a hissy fit<\/s> staging a protest in front of the J Hotel Sunday night, hurling insults at the club and at head coach Thiago Motta.<\/p>\n

Embarrassing though Juventus\u2019 exit from the Coppa \u2014 and the Champions League the week before \u2014 had been, Juve\u2019s league form had actually been impressive. Since the loss to Napoli at the end of January, no team had gained more ground on the top spot than the Bianconeri, and as they went into Monday\u2019s home contest with Hellas Verona, they had the chance to pull themselves within six points of league leaders Inter (barf) and insert themselves as a factor in the title race.<\/p>\n

There was a long, terrible period where it looked like that might come to pass. The 14th-placed Mastini held up under extreme pressure for three-quarters of the game, surviving thanks to a combination of subpar finishing and goalkeeper Lorenzo Montip\u00f2 claiming the latest edition of the Stefano Sorrentino Prize for Gianlugi Buffon Impersonation.<\/p>\n

But the dam finally broke with just over 15 minutes to go. The midfield pivot started and finished the move for Kh\u00e9phren Thuram\u2019s opening goal, and Juve continued to turn the screw on their opponents for the rest of the match, keeping more than 70 percent possession and only allowing a single shot the rest of the way before Teun Koopmeiners sealed the 2-0 win in the final minute of regular time.<\/p>\n

The victory took Juve\u2019s league winning streak to five, maintained their spot in the top four, and brought them within six points of the league lead and only three points of third place\u2014a spot Juve could claim for themselves with a win in their next round.<\/p>\n

Not bad for a team that the media coverage was making look as though they were spiraling out of control.<\/p>\n