Although Inter Milan have wrapped up the league title, there is still plenty left to play for in Serie A. The competition for the European places is high with a limited number of spots available. Some of the contenders for the Champions League places – including AC Milan and Juventus – were in action on Wednesday night.
In the closely fought race for Europe, Atalanta, Napoli, AC Milan, and Juventus have all traded places with each other. With two matches to go this season, it remains to be seen which three of those four sides will join Inter Milan in the UEFA Champions League next season. Matters are further complicated by the fact that Lazio are not far behind and could sneak into fourth at the last moment.
The focus was on Juventus and Andrea Pirlo ahead of their meeting with Sassuolo on Wednesday. The rookie coach had come under a lot of criticism last weekend, as his team was thrashed 3-0 by rivals AC Milan. However, the Juventus hierarchy decided against sacking the Italian on the spot. Instead, he has been given until the end of the current season to save himself. The target is clear – qualify for the Champions League.
The prospect of Cristiano Ronaldo missing out on Europe’s premier competition has not set in yet. However, even his best efforts on Wednesday night weren’t enough to propel the Bianconeri back into the top four. The blame can’t be laid on Juventus on this occasion, provided that they did the job asked of them. However, so did the other contenders for the UCL spots.
Juventus beat Sassuolo 3-1 on the night, with goals from Adrien Rabiot, Ronaldo, and Paulo Dybala. The Old Lady was lucky enough not to concede a goal in the first half, but rather surprisingly, they went into the break with a two-goal cushion. Gianluigi Buffon – who announced he was leaving Juventus for the second time recently – started in goal and saved a penalty from Domenico Berardi before Rabiot gave Juve the lead. Ronaldo doubled their lead just before half-time, scoring his 100th goal for the Torinese club.
Sassuolo hit back in the second half when Italy U-21 striker Giacomo Raspadori pulled one back. However, the Neroverdi’s joy didn’t last long, as Paulo Dybala struck in the 66th minute to restore Juventues’ two-goal lead. They held on to win the match, and consequently, kept the gap between themselves and fourth-placed Napoli to just one point.
Things didn’t go as smoothly for the other Turin club – Torino. Davide Nicola’s side welcomed AC Milan to Turin; Juventus hoped that their rivals would do them a favour. Torino ended up losing the match in a truly catastrophic manner. They conceded seven goals at home to Milan, with Ante Rebic scoring a second-half hattrick.
Theo Hernandez opened the scoring for the Rossoneri, rifling in a strike from outside the box. Shortly after, Milan went two-nil up, as Franck Kessie made amends for his penalty miss against Juventus by scoring one against Torino. Stefano Pioli’s team took a healthy two-nil lead into the break, but it wasn’t until the second half that the fireworks truly set off.
Brahim Diaz added to his goal on the weekend by scoring again. The Spaniard was left with the simplest of finishes after being played through by Kessie. Hernandez grabbed his brace just past the hour mark before Rebic took over the show. The Croatian striker scored three goals in the space of 12 minutes. He smashed in his first from the left, tapped into an empty net for his second, and powered a shot home from close range with his knee to complete his treble. Rebic took the match ball home with him, while AC Milan took home all three points.
Milan’s win, coupled with positive results for both Atalanta and Napoli, meant that Juventus stayed out of the top four. The Bianconeri will face champions Inter Milan next weekend. A loss – coupled with other results – could officially signal the end of their hunt for a UCL spot.
