At the Luigi Ferraris Stadium in Genoa, Sampdoria hosted Juventus for an anticipate fixture form the 29th round of Serie A. Maya Yoshida was unlucky to break the deadlock with an own-goal, and Alvaro Morata doubled the Bianconeri’s lead from the spot. The Blucerchiati were adamant finding the back of the net, but Wojciech Szczesny superbly denied Antonio Candreva’s penalty kick. The hosts eventually grabbed one back thanks to Abdulhamid Sabiri’s deflected freekick, but Morata’s header ended their hopes of a comeback. So here are our player ratings for the exciting encounter between Sampdoria and Juventus which ended 3-1 in favore of the Old Lady.
Sampdoria (4-3-1-2)
Wladimiro Falcone – 5.5
The Italian shot-stopper could do little about the first two goals, however, he allowed Morata’s header to beat him at the near post on the third Juventus goal.
Bartosz Bereszynski – 5.5
An uninspiring display from the Polish right-man. Allowed Kean to skip past him ahead of the Bianconeri’s spot kick, and lost Morata on some occasions. Had very little contribution on the attacking phase.
Maya Yoshida – 5.5
The former Southampton defender was unfortunate to score in his own net, but one would have expected him to do better due to his vast experience. But he did decently beside that incident.
Omar Colley – 5
The Gambian found trouble against the Old Lady’s strikers from start to finish. Morata made him chase shadows early on, and then gave away a spot kick for a clumsy challenge on Kean. His display never improved afterwards.
Tommaso Augello – 5.5
The attacking-minded left-back tried to threaten with crosses, but they were few and very far-between. Cuadrado and Locatelli had him pegged back deep into his own area.
Antonio Candreva – 5.5
A day to forget for the former Inter and Juventus man. He’s arguably Samp’s best player this season, but he couldn’t create danger with his crossing and only troubled Szczesny with one shot. Moreover, he failed to beat the Polish goalkeeper from the spot.
Tomas Rincon – 6
“The General” is yet another ex-Juventus player who was hoping to impress against his former side. Gave Cuadrado some tough treatment early on and proved to be solid in the middle of the park, even if he didn’t offer much when going forward.
Morten Thorsby – 5.5
The Norwegian put up a hard-working performance as ever, but Locatelli was simply on another level.
Stefano Sensi – 5.5
The Inter loanee acted as Marco Giampaolo’s playmaker, and almost scored from a dangerous shot early on. But his threat regressed with the minutes before leaving the pitch in the second half.
Fabio Quagliarella – 5
The veteran barely saw the ball and eventually cut a frustrated figure before leaving his spot on the pitch to Sabiri.
Francesco Caputo – 5.5
The former Sassuolo man is a true fox in the box, and you could sense his danger every time he received the ball inside the Juventus area. However, Massimiliano Allegri’s men kept him in check for the majority of the match.
Sampdoria Substitutes
Abdelhamid Sabiri – 6.5
The German reenergized the hosts following his introduction with his smart movement, and eventually grabbed a goal thanks to a deflected freekick.
Sebastian Giovinco – 5.5
The Atomic Ant tried to make a statement against his former club, but found very little space to maneuver in the final third.
Simone Trimboli – N/A
Andrea Conti – N/A
8 – Álvaro #Morata has scored 10+ goals among all competitions in each of the last eight seasons – indeed, since his first year for Juventus (2014/15); he managed to do that in every campaign (for Juventus, Real Madrid, Chelsea and Atletico Madrid). Habitué.#SampdoriaJuventus pic.twitter.com/FnBciDd1fw
— OptaPaolo ? (@OptaPaolo) March 12, 2022
Juventus (4-3-3)
Wojciech Szczesny – 7
The former Roma man made history by saving his third spot kick in a row in Serie A. He also made two decent interventions to deny shots from Candreva and Sensi. But on the flip side, he rushed off his line on two occasions without finding success which could have cost his side.
Danilo – 6.5
A solid if unspectacular display from the Brazilian on his 100th appearance for Juventus. Didn’t surge forward on too many occasions, but his manager knows that he can always rely on his services at the back. Made a great sliding tackle to intercept Giovinco’s shot.
Daniele Rugani – 6.5
The former Empoli man didn’t commit any mistake throughout the match, as he continues to prove his worth in the absence of Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci. Kept Quagliarella at bay.
Matthijs de Ligt – 7
As always, the former Ajax captain was the main man at the back for Juventus, making a string of clearances from start to finish. Cut off all the long balls that were heading towards Caputo.
Luca Pellegrini – 6
The young left-back helped his teammates at the back and managed to limit Candreva’s threat. However, his attacking contribution left much to be desired, as the Sampdoria defenders easily warded him off.
Manuel Locatelli – 7
A commanding display in the middle of the park for the Euro 2020 winner who did it all against Sampdoria. Picked up his teammates with confident and sublime passing, protected the backline with his defensive contribution and eventually found Morata’s head with a fabulous cross at a delicate timing.
Arthur Melo – 7
The Brazilian continues to improve with every fresh performance. Had the upper hand in his personal duel against Sensi, orchestrated the play in the middle, made some timely interventions in defense and picked up Kean with a long ball which culminated in a spot kick in favor of Juventus.
Adrien Rabiot – 5
While giving away a penalty kick due to a handball can be considered an unlucky incident, the Frenchman was already enduring another disappointing outing. Despite making the right movements, his touch always let him down. Also received a booking for a needless challenge.
Juan Cuadrado – 7
Another vibrant performance from the Colombian veteran who once again prompted an own-goal thanks to a powerful pass towards the mouth of the goal. He was everywhere on the pitch, but he’s mostly dangerous when cutting from the right wing.
Moise Kean – 7
An encouraging display from the Italian striker who’s linked with an exit from the club. Brought down the ball with his chest which eventually led to the first goal, and earned the spot kick for the second Juventus goal. The Sampdoria defenders simply couldn’t contain him.
Alvaro Morata – 8
A wonderful performance from start to finish. The Spaniard repeatedly dropped back, helped in bringing the ball out, and then launched runs that left his markers in his wake. Picked up Cuadrado with a smart pass which led to the first goal, before converting from the spot. Killed the match by completing a personal brace with a clinical header from a tight angle.
Juventus Substitutes
Dusan Vlahovic – 6
Created a big chance for himself thanks to his sheer power, but was uncharacteristically undecisive in front of goal.
Alex Sandro – N/A
Mattia De Sciglio – N/A