December 28, (THEWILL) — Juventus climbed to third place in Serie A following a 2-0 victory over Pisa, though the performance failed to impress against opponents sitting second from bottom in the division. The win leaves the Turin side just one point behind league leaders Inter.
The match began with Juventus controlling possession, yet clear chances remained scarce in the opening period. Weston McKennie fired a shot from a narrow angle that goalkeeper Adrian Semper saved, whilst Kenan Yildiz sent a curling effort just off target. Pisa gained confidence and nearly opened the scoring in the 44th minute when Stefano Moreo met a short corner with a flicked header that struck the crossbar.
The visitors continued to threaten after the interval, with Samuele Angori forcing a deflection wide before Matteo Tramoni hit the post with a free header past the hour mark. Lloyd Kelly also struck the woodwork moments later with a powerful drive. Juventus benefited from an own goal in the 73rd minute after Arturo Calabresi inadvertently diverted McKennie’s shot past Semper whilst attempting to clear under pressure from Pierre Kalulu.
Yildiz sealed the points late on by converting into an unguarded net following excellent build-up play from Jonathan David. Edon Zhegrova had seen an earlier attempt pushed over the bar by Semper before the final goal arrived.
Despite claiming all three points and improving their league standing, Juventus will be concerned by their inability to dominate a team struggling near the relegation zone. Pisa struck the frame of the goal on three separate occasions and can feel unfortunate not to have claimed at least a share of the spoils.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
