Juventus and new Napoli star David Neres had a meaningful weekend from the statistical standpoint but for opposite reasons. The Bianconeri picked up their second nil-nil draw in a row. It hadn’t happened in 2012 when they equalized without scoring versus Siena and Parma, Opta informs (via OneFootball).
The Old Lady started most of their new weapons, Nico Gonzalez, Teun Koopmeiners, and Douglas Luiz, but were unable to break through versus Empoli. Goalie Devis Vasquez answered the bell on a pair of juicy chances for Dusan Vlahovic. On the other hand, they are the only team in the top-five leagues that has yet to concede.
While Juventus rewrote the record books negatively, David Neres did it thanks to his creative prowess. The Brazilian speedster notched another assist versus Cagliari, making it three in a row since coming to Serie A. It had never occurred since those data started being tracked in 2004/2005.
The former Benfica star has yet to start but has made his presence known nonetheless. He has teed up Giovanni Simeone, Frank Anguissa, and Alessandro Buongiorno with his pinpoint crosses. The Azzurri spent €28M to acquire him last summer.
Our Take on Juventus and David Neres
Empoli are solid, but it was surely an odd and flat performance by the Bianconeri. It was very noticeable that their newcomers lacked chemistry with each other and the rest of the squad. Paradoxically, they had fared better in the first two rounds with lesser players in the XI, as organization is key in Thiago Motta’s system. It’s likely just a matter of time. Instead, the Napoli attacker couldn’t have started any better.
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