Andrea Pirlo’s shaky start of the Serie A season continues as Juventus conceded another disappointing draw, this time at home against Hellas Verona, with Substitutes Andrea Favilli and Dejan Kulusevski scoring one goal for each side.
Verona enjoyed a solid start of the match, with Ivan Juric’ side causing Juventus all sorts of problems with their high pressing game, and thought that they opened the score before Ebrima Colley’s goal was disallowed for offside.
However, the Bianconeri picked up their pace after the initial 20 minutes. Federico Bernardeschi’s shot was parried away by Marco Silvestri, while a dangerous counter-attack was wasted when Juan Cuadrado’s thunderous shot crashed against the woodwork. The Colombian played provider later on when his sublime pass put Alvaro Morata through on goal. The former Real and Atletico Madrid striker expertly chipped it into the far corner, but VAR ended up denying him a goal for the second week in a row.
After the break, Hellas Verona once again started strongly, and eventually took an unexpected lead when a quick Mattia Zaccagni play found Favilli who took his shot well, leaving Juventus shot-stopper Wojciech Szczęsny with no chance to save it.
The Italian champions seemed awakened by the goal, as they suddenly started pushing up the pitch and pegging the visitors back to their area. Paulo Dybala hit the woodwork as lady luck kept defying La Vecchia Signora.
Thankfully for Juventus supporters, Dejan Kulusevski brought his A-game after coming on for Bernardeschi, as he dribbled his way to the Verona box and sent a low drive to Silvestri’s far bottom corner.
Andrea Pirlo’s men kept pushing for a winner until the end, but were denied by several Silvestri heroics as the final whistle spelled Juve’s third draw in a row on the field.
Now let’s have a look at the best and worst performers from Juventus and Hellas Verona.
Favilli+Kulusevski: the points are shared at Allianz Stadium. ?#SerieATIM #WeAreCalcio pic.twitter.com/BZOozIdmIg
— Lega Serie A (@SerieA_EN) October 25, 2020
Juventus
Wojciech Szczęsny – 6
The Polish international didn’t have much to do, with his save on Zaccagni’s long shot being his most notable action. Couldn’t do much about Favilli’s goal.
Merih Demiral – 7
The former Sassuolo man is quickly becoming one of the most intimidating defenders in the league. He expertly dealt with every Verona ball thrown in his direction.
Leonardo Bonucci – 5.5
Perhaps he was carrying a certain injury from the get-go, but it seems that the Italy international is becoming less and less reliable with every season. He didn’t inspire confidence for his teammates.
Danilo – 6.5
The Brazilian international receives extra points for being once again thrown out-of-position. He was able to push forward during the first half, as he helped in creating Cuadrado’s dangerous chance, but had to stay at the back after Bonucci’s exit.
Juan Cuadrado – 7
On another night, the Juventus winger could have easily left the pitch with a goal or two and a brilliant assist, but luck wasn’t on his side tonight, as he was denied by the woodwork, VAR and finally Verona goalkeeper Silvestri.
Arthur – 6.5
An impressive performance from the former Barcelona player who is slowly being handed the keys to the Bianconeri midfield. Almost every Juventus play had to go through him.
Adrien Rabiot – 6
An imposing presence in the middle of the pitch. The French decisively won the ball that led to Morata’s disallowed goal. But in the second half, his weak pass ended up giving Verona the lead.
Aaron Ramsey – 6.5
The Former Arsenal man is almost a mandatory piece in Andrea Pirlo’s puzzle, as he plays a major role in linking up the midfield with the attack. Set-up a delicious goal-scoring opportunity that Cuadrado wasted, and pressed well for the whole match
Federico Bernardeschi – 6
In the absence of Federico Chiesa and Alex Sandro, the Italian winger had a major opportunity to stake his claim for a starting berth on the left flank. While it was a hard working performance, and also threatened Verona with a long shot, he eventually failed to add much to Juventus in attack.
Paulo Dybala – 6.5
Despite obviously lacking in match sharpness, La Joya burst to life in the second half, and had several chances to score, with one his shots crashing against the woodwork.
Alvaro Morata – 7
His first half goal might have been disallowed for a minimal offside position, but nonetheless showcased his sublime finishing abilities when he brilliantly chipped the ball over the keeper and straight into the far corner.
Juventus Substitutes
Dejan Kulusevski – 7.5
Easily the best performer in Juventus, as his introduction brought the team back into the match with a beautifully worked solo goal.
Gianluca Frabotta – N/A
Giacomo Vrioni – N/A
Hellas Verona XI
Marco Silvestri – 8
Despite conceding the equalizer, the Verona goalkeeper enjoyed a marvelous performance, denying Dybala, Morata and Cuadrado when Juventus searched for a winner in the added minutes.
Federico Ceccherini – 6.5
A solid performance by the former Fiorentina defender, who left the pitch early in the second half – probably due to an injury.
Matteo Lovato – 7
The young Italian is one to keep an eye on as he already cemented himself at the heart of the Verona defense. Had a nice battle with Morata for 90 minutes.
Alan Empereur – 6.5
The Brazilian managed to keep Dybala quiet for the first half, but things got a little more complicated for him in the second.
Davide Faraoni – 6
The Verona captain didn’t have a bad outing tonight, but loses points for failing to stop Kulusevski when he scored the equalizer for Juventus.
Ronaldo Vieira – 6.5
A tough performance from the former Sampdoria man, who is becoming a mainstay in his coach’s tactical plans.
Adrien Tameze – 5.5
The Atalanta loanee didn’t offer much for his side going forward, or in providing the required cover for the defense either, and was eventually subbed out early in the second half.
Darko Lazovic – 6.5
The former Genoa wing-back remains an underrated piece in Verona’s tactical scheme, as he darts up and down the field helping his side wherever needed.
Ebrima Colley – 6.5
The young Verona striker was a menace on the right for Juventus. He scored a goal that was rightfully disallowed for offside, and almost created another. Bigger things await him in the future.
Mattia Zaccagni – 7
He created his side’s goal with a nice run followed by a smart assist. He could have caused the Bianconeri much more trouble if it wasn’t for Demiral’s interventions.
Nikola Kalinić – 5.5
The former Milan and Fiorentina striker had a meaningless physical battle with Bonucci during the first half, before getting quickly subbed out in the second half without contributing much to his team’s cause.
Verona Substitutes
Ivan Ilic – 6.5
The Serbian youngster is obviously a talent to watch, as he seemed unfazed with the size of the opposition. He tried to dictate the play for Hellas.
Giangiacomo Magnani – 6
A decent outing for the defender who helped his team in getting away with a valuable draw.
Andrea Favilli – 7
Enter. Score against your former club. Leave. This is the tale of the 7 minutes that the young striker spent on the pitch before picking up an injury while taking his shot which ended up in Szczęsny’s left corner.
Antonin Barak – 6
The former Udinese man was introduced to add numbers in the middle of the pitch, and didn’t disappoint in his hard working display.
1 – Andrea Favilli è il primo giocatore a subentrare, segnare e essere sostituito in meno di 10 minuti in un match di Serie A nell'era dei tre punti a vittoria (dal 1994/95). Cameo.#JuveVerona
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo) October 25, 2020
I am reiterating that Demiral, De ligt and David Alaba is the future of Juventus defence. The sooner we get them together, the better for Juve. With no offence to any of Juve defender, Leo and Chilini are in their hay days… Mr Paratici, use the magical wand and get David Alaba from Munich.
For substantiate midfield creativity, get Houssem Aouar. With this midfield we are finding it difficult to win against Crotone and Verona, what will we do against the tpp ranking teams in Seria A, leave aside UCL. Chiesa and Kulusevski are great addition to the team. Even Morata with his subtle goal scoring form has exhibited his class. Now in order to make this team invincible, and Ronaldo lethal, you need a creative and dependable midfield, which will nor only cause havoc pn opponent while attacking, but also snatch and block the game at the mid while defending. The utterance of their name should cause a cold current run down the opponent’s spine. Get Adama Tarore at the right with Chiesa at the left and Houssem Aouar down the middle. Then Ronaldo, Morata and Dybala / Kulusevski will create devastation at the opponents goal.