Juventus’ woes continued as their winless run stretched to eight games in all competitions, following a 1-0 defeat to SS Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico that has further increased the pressure on Bianconeri head coach Igor Tudor.
Lazio started the match on the front foot and went ahead with the very first opportunity of the game, as Toma Basic’s deflected effort from just over 20 yards out found the bottom corner after just nine minutes played.
As The Old Lady continued to be frustrated by Lazio’s stout defence in the first half, Maurizio Sarri’s side almost doubled their lead shortly after the half-hour mark, as both Matteo Guendouzi and Gustav Isaksen were denied in quick succession by some heroic Juventus defending inside a congested penalty area.
As for Juventus, their best chance to equalise before the interval undoubtedly arrived in the 34th minute, when Canadian international Jonathan David latched onto a smart through ball, only to be undone by a terrific block from goalkeeper Ivan Provedel.
This proved to be the only shot on target that Tudor’s side could produce before half-time, and something a lot stronger than oranges would be needed at the interval to inject some zest into the lethargic visitors.
The match became a more feisty affair as the second half progressed, but there wasn’t much in the way of clear-cut chances being created until the 65th minute, when Lazio’s Boulaye Dia fired in a shot that Mattia Perin smartly saved at his near post.
Juventus were still in sore need of some inspiration at this point, and continued to lack a cutting edge, despite Tudor making a double change immediately after Perin’s save, including Khephren Thuram’s deployment in place of Teun Koopmeiners.
A header on target from Thuram himself after 75 minutes forced Provedel into a decent save, which gave the visitors hope that a breakthrough could be found.
But with Juventus pushing players forward for a leveller, their defence was more stretched than ever, and both Isaksen and Pedro came desperately close to wrapping the game up on the counter-attack.
Lazio’s victory sees them creep into the top half of the Serie A table, and also marks four matches since their last defeat. Meanwhile, unrest continues to grow amongst Juventus players and fans alike, with the Old Lady slipping one place to eighth and still searching for their first competitive win since mid-September.
