Juventus vs Chelsea 1-0: Chiesa Strike Sinks European Champions

Juventus registered a very crucial win by defeating Chelsea 1-0 in Turin today. Federico Chiesa was the Bianconeri’s hero as he kept threatening the opposition goal before scoring at the start of the second half.

Thomas Tuchel’s side dominated possession and created a lot of chances throughout the game but the Juve backline was up to the task when needed to.

While the Bianconeri did not attack as much as Chelsea, they had some really good chances to score and in all fairness, should have had at least one goal in the first half.

However, Massimiliano Allegri and the Juve fans will be glad with the result and this was a statement win for a team that was under heavy scrutiny after their shaky start. The Serie A giants are now at the top of their group with two wins out of two.

?? ??? #??? ?????????? ??!#JuveChelsea #ForzaJuve pic.twitter.com/xU0ECqRv7e

— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) September 29, 2021

Juventus were without both Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata due to the injuries they sustained during Sunday’s game against Sampdoria. However, that didn’t stop Allegri from going with his 4-4-2 formation.

Chiesa and Federico Bernardeschi were the two starting centre-forwards while Moise Kean was on the bench. Adrien Rabiot was back in the starting XI after missing the Sampdoria game due to a knock. Wojciech Szczesny was reinstated into the lineup after watching the previous game from the bench.

Chelsea were without Reece James and N’Golo Kante for the match with the former suffering an ankle injury during the weekend while the latter tested positive for coronavirus.

Thiago Silva was back in the starting XI, as were Hakim Ziyech and Kai Havertz. Timo Werner was on the bench with Romelu Lukaku starting as the lone centre-forward.

Up the Chels! ? @ParimatchGlobal | #JUVCHE pic.twitter.com/XhcTRQ7aW2

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) September 29, 2021

Chelsea started strongly and were on the attack from the start. They won an early corner from which Lukaku tried to score but he hit the ball straight towards Szczesny who had little trouble holding on to it.

Juventus had a chance to threaten on the counter when Rabiot made a run forward with plenty of space available. However, the Frenchman’s pass was awful and nothing came of it.

The Bianconeri had another glorious opportunity to find the net when Mateo Kovacic gave the ball away and Chiesa made a quick run forward. However, the 23-year-old went for goal when he could have passed. His shot was just wide off the far post.

As the first half progressed, Juventus became more involved in the game from an attacking standpoint and Rabiot took a good shot at goal but it went just over the bar.

HT | ⌛️ | A great effort this half, keep it up and we can get that goal! ?#JuveChelsea #JuveUCL #ForzaJuve pic.twitter.com/lRoZBJwXCg

— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) September 29, 2021

Juventus started the second half in the best possible manner as Chiesa put them 1-0 up after only ten seconds were played. This was the 23-year-old’s fifth Champions League goal in his last five appearances in the competition.

The Bianconeri had a glorious chance to double their lead through Bernardeschi but his shot was over the bar. Chelsea had an opportunity to equalize when substitute Callum Hudson-Odoi’s cross found Lukaku but his header was way off target. The Belgian had another chance to find the net but his shot went over the crossbar.

Chelsea kept attacking with Hudson-Odoi delivering crosses from the right but to no avail. Havertz came tantalizingly close to equalizing but his header went over the bar.

Juve thus registered a massive win that could silence some of their doubters for now. They next take on city rivals Torino on Saturday.

 

MATCH SCORECARD

September 29, 2021 – Champions League 2021-2022 Group H
JUVENTUS – CHELSEA 1-0

SCORER: 46′ Chiesa

REFEREE: Manzano from Spain
NOTES: Yellow Cards: Cuadrado (J), Alonso, Ziyech, Rudiger (C); Added Time: 1st Half 0′, 2nd Half 5′