Juventus drop crucial points as rivals Torino fight back to draw

Posted Saturday, February 19, 2022 by Marca.com

Belotti cancelled out Matthijs de Ligt's opening goal

Juventus drop crucial points as rivals Torino fight back to draw
Belotti celebrates his goal against Juventus ALESSANDRO DI MARCOEFE

Juventus put themselves at further risk of missing out on Champions League qualification, after the Bianconeri slipped to a 1-1 draw in the Turin derby, inviting Atalanta to take fourth spot from them.

It has been a mixed season for Massimiliano Allegri, although the mid-season purchase of Dusan Vlahovic was put down as a serious example of the Bianconeri's ambition to move back to the top of Italian football rather quickly.

Torino arrived at the Juventus Stadium sitting comfortably in mid-table, but they were resilient enough in the first half to avoid being blown away by Juventus' superior firepower.

Alvaro Morata, Paulo Dybala and Vlahovic were the starting front trio, but none had any real impact on the match, with the opening goal for the hosts coming through a rather surprising source.

A corner delivered into the penalty area found the head of Matthijs de Ligt perfectly and the Dutch defender planted a header home from close range, just inside the right-hand-post.

In truth, that was as good as things got for Juventus. Despite their dominance in the early exchanges, it was actually their local rivals who grew into the game. Going to the Juventus Stadium and having 58 percent of the ball is not as easy thing to do, yet Torino managed it, as well as registering more shots than their opponents.

Torino could have levelled the game far earlier than they eventually did, with Rolando Mandragora having a shot from range saved by the outstretched Wojciech Szczesny.

Andrea Belotti eventually found the net and got Torino level, scoring with a fine low shot into the middle of the net, although credit has to go to Josip Brekalo who provided the fine assist with a pass into the penalty area.

Juventus fans will lament the lack of chances they created, however both teams may leave Friday night's match with a bitter taste as the visitors looked to have lost star defender Bremer to an injury in the 88th minute.

Atalanta now sit just three points adrift of the Old Lady in fourth spot, but have two crucial games in hand, which could well prove vital with Juventus surrendering control of the fourth position for now.