Cesena 0-1 Juventus: Borriello goal sees Turin giants continue title charge and condemn hosts to Serie B

Juventus moved a step closer to the Scudetto and relegated Cesena in the process by recording a hard-fought 1-0 victory at the Dino Manuzzi on Wednesday evening.

Marco Borriello, who arrived in Turin on loan from Roma in January, picked a most opportune time to net his first Serie A goal of the season, coming off the bench to fire home with just 10 minutes remaining to decide the game in the Bianconeri’s favor.

Juventus, of course, made a rip-roaring start to Sunday’s 4-0 rout of Roma and should have been ahead inside nine minutes against Cesena. However, Andrea Pirlo struck the base of the right post after referee Marco Guida had pointed the spot after his assistant had incorrectly ruled that Vangelis Moras had handled the ball in the area as Mirko Vucinic tried to flick it past the Greek defender.

For a long time it appeared that Pirlo’s miss might prove costly as the Bianconeri struggled to take command of the game. Indeed, their best opportunities arrived from set pieces, with Vucinic nodding over from just five meters out after being left unmarked at a corner before Paolo De Ceglie saw a header kept out by a combination of Francesco Antonioli and the right post.

The Bianconeri did up the tempo after the interval and Alessandro Matri very nearly broke the deadlock after being slipped in on goal by Claudio Marchisio but his subsequent shot was palmed off the line by Antonioli after being initially slowed down by a deflection off the keeper’s legs.

Juve continued to threaten through Pirlo’s pinpoint dead-ball deliveries but became increasingly frustrated by Cesena’s disciplined rearguard action.

Coach Antonio Conte decided to send on Alessandro Del Piero and Marco Borriello in the hope of forcing a winner and while the former drew a fine stop out of Antonioli with a trademark free kick, it was the latter who turned out to be Juve’s match-winner, the striker firing first time into the bottom left corner of the Cesena goal after reacting quickest to Vucinic’s knockdown.

It was a crucial, crucial goal for Juventus in light of AC Milan’s victory over Genoa at San Siro as it keeps the club three points above its title rival. It also represented the final nail in Cesena’s coffin as it confirmed the team's demotion to Serie B.