Juventus 2-0 Bologna: Serie A holders move up to fourth

Juventus 2-0 Bologna: Cristiano Ronaldo fails to find the back of the net but goals from Arthur Melo and Weston McKennie give Andrea Pirlo’s side vital three points as Serie A holders move up to fourth in the table

  • Arthur Melo opened the scoring for Juventus after 15 mins with a deflected strike
  • Bologna keeper Lukasz Skorupski brilliantly denied Cristiano Ronaldo early on 
  • Juve midfielder Weston McKennie made sure of all three points with a header 
  • The win means Andrea Pirlo’s side move up to fourth, seven points off AC Milan 

Juventus got their Serie A title defence back on track with a hard-fought 2-0 home win over Bologna on Sunday that moved Andrea Pirlo’s side into the top four.

Though Cristiano Ronaldo did not score, Arthur Melo notched his first goal for the Turin club in the first half with a deflected strike and American midfielder Weston McKennie headed home the second after 71 minutes.

Bologna goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski made some stunning saves to keep his side in the match and the visitors also had good chances in an entertaining encounter at the Allianz Stadium.

Juventus’ Weston McKennie (R) scored with a decisive header to put the game beyond doubt

Arthur Melo (second-right) had earlier given Juventus the lead with 15 minutes on the clock

Cristiano Ronaldo played the full 90 minutes but was unable to get onto the scoresheet today

The win means Andrea Pirlo’s out-of-form side move up to fourth in the Serie A table 

It was a much-needed victory for Pirlo’s side following the disappointment of their 2-0 defeat to Inter Milan last weekend.

It cut the gap behind league leaders AC Milan to seven points and the champions also have a game in hand.

Juventus are fourth with 36 points from 18 games, one point behind AS Roma in third. 

Bologna are 13th with 20 points.

MATCH FACTS 

Juventus: Szczesny, Cuadrado, Bonucci (De Ligt 78), Chiellini, Danilo, McKennie (Demiral 90+2), Arthur Melo (Rabiot 78), Bentacur, Bernardeschi (Morata 69), Kulusevski (Ramsey 78), Ronaldo 

Subs not used: Chiesa, Pinsoglio, Di Pardo, Dragusin, Frabotta, Fagioli, Buffon

Goals: Melo 15, McKennie 71

Bookings: Chiellini, Arthur Melo, Kulusevski 

Bologna: Skorupski, De Silvestri (Soumaoro 45), Larangeira, Tomiyasu, Dijks (Palacio 75), Svanberg (Dominguez 64), Schouten, Orsolini (Skov Olsen 76), Soriano, Vignato (Sansone 45), Barrow 

Subs not used: da Costa Junior, Hickey, Paz, Poli, Baldursson, Breza

Goals: None

Bookings: Dijks, Vignato 




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