On Saturday night, Juventus hosted Lazio at the Allianz stadium in Turin. The visitors surprisingly took the lead early on as Joaquin Correa pounced on a poor pass from Dejan Kulusevski, but Adrien Rabiot’s thunderous shot brought the hosts back on level terms before the end of the first half. Alvaro Morata took charge after the break, giving the Bianconeri the lead with a swift counter attack, before sealing the 3-1 victory from the spot. Here are our player ratings for the top round 25 clash between Juventus and Lazio.
Juventus XI
Wojciech Szczesny – 6.5
The former Arsenal shot-stopper was beaten by Correa for the first goal, but also made several saves to keep his side in the match when the capital side was dominating early on.
Juan Cuadrado – 5.5
The Colombian made his return from injury after missing 20 days of action, and therefore looked a little rusty. Nonetheless, Andrea Pirlo must be pleased to have him back, and he decided to take him off in the second half to keep him fresh for the Porto clash.
Danilo – 6.5
The Brazilian was surprisingly deployed in the Regista role. Tried his best to distribute the ball from the middle – although it’s not his strongest point – and did well to shield the defensive line. However, he looked much more at ease when he reverted to the right back position at the end of the match.
Merih Demiral – 6
The former Sassuolo man didn’t enjoy his best outing on Saturday, as he couldn’t block Correa’s shot on the opener, and had his timing wrong at times. Nonetheless, he made sure Immobile remained quiet all evening.
Alex Sandro – 6
The Brazilian was the emergency center back amidst the Juventus injury crisis, but he did well to intercept several Lazio plays, and helped in containing Immobile.
Federico Chiesa – 7
The Italian winger is becoming more and more vital for the team with every passing match. Caused trouble for the Bianconcelesti defenders with his tricks and flicks, and started a counter attack out of nowhere with a vicious run before assisting Morata on the second goal.
Aaron Ramsey – 6
The attacking midfielder might lack the technical touch at times, but he displayed his shrewdness by winning the penalty kick which ended up sealing the match.
Adrien Rabiot – 7.5
This was arguably the Frenchman’s best performance since the beginning of the season. Brought Juventus back to the match with a stunning strike, and kept running until the end of the match while the Lazio players were no longer able to catch up with him.
Federico Bernardeschi – 6.5
A good showing from the winger-turned-fullback. The Italian is rapidly adapting to his new role, as he never abandoned his defensive duties, whilst trying to support the attacks as much as he could. Enjoyed late success in his personal battle against Milinkovic-Savic.
Dejan Kulusevski – 5.5
The young Swede was the main culprit behind the visitor’s goal, as he gifted them the ball with a clumsy back-pass. Tried to make up for his mistake by creating something in attack, but lacked the final touch.
Alvaro Morata – 8
A terrific performance from the former Real and Atletico Madrid star. Contributed in the equalizer with a smart assist to Rabiot, before finishing him a swift counter attack with brilliant strike with his weaker foot, and completed his brace from a well-taken spot kick.
Juventus Substitutes
Cristiano Ronaldo – N/A
Weston McKennie – N/A
Arthur – N/A
Leonardo Bonucci – N/A
Alessandro Di Pardo – N/A
Lazio XI
Pepe Reina – 5
The Veteran goalkeeper barely had anything to do beside picking up the ball from his net on three occasions. Although there was some incredible power behind the strikes of Morata and Rabiot, he must be disappointed after getting beaten twice on his near post.
Adam Marusic – 5.5
Simone Inzaghi decided to deploy the Montenegrin wingback within the back-three, but his plan didn’t go too well. He almost caused a penalty kick against his side when he seemed to have brought down Morata inside the penalty box. Substituted early in the second half.
Francesco Acerbi – 6
The Italian veteran was arguably the most solid Lazio defender throughout the match, and he tried to support his team’s attacks as well by creeping deep into the Juventus areas.
Wesley Hoedt – 5.5
The Dutch international was the focal point of the Aquile defense, but he failed to deny Morata’s run on the hosts’ second goal, as the striker managed to outpace him.
Mohamed Fares – 6
The former Spal wingback posed a great danger for the Bianconeri defenses, as he threatened Szczesny’s goal on three different occasions, but eventually couldn’t produce a goal.
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic – 6
A frustrating night for the big Lazio midfielder, as he could have been the star of the match, but his header crashed into the woodwork, and Juventus took the lead few minutes later. Was also close to scoring on different occasions.
Lucas Leiva – 6
The Brazilian veteran sat deep and helped his side in the midfield battle. Inzaghi took him off early in the second half, and the visitors immediately lost their grip on the match afterwards.
Luis Alberto – 5.5
The former Liverpool player threatened with few shots, but his display was mostly underwhelming, as he didn’t provide his usual killer-passes to the strikers.
Senad Lulic – 6
The Bosnian veteran played on the right side – instead of his favorite left flank – but still did his best to put on a hard-working shift and limit the danger of the likes of Chiesa and Bernardeschi.
Joaquin Correa – 7
The Argentine took advantage of a botched Juventus play to put Lazio in the lead early on. Rounded Demiral brilliantly before unleashing a low shot that Szczesny couldn’t reach. Could have added another goal or two, and in the end of the he was mostly let down by his uninspired teammates.
Ciro Immobile – 5
The Italian bomber had a tough night against the Bianconeri defenses who didn’t allow him a sniff inside the box, which explains why he went for the long shots towards the end of the match.
Lazio Substitutes
Gonzalo Escalante – 5
The Argentine allowed Chiesa to escape for Juve’s second goal.
Patric – 5.5
The Spaniard tried to support the attack from the right side, but his effect was minimal.