Torino 2-2 Juventus: 5 Talking points as Cristiano Ronaldo rescues a point for the reigning champions | Serie A 2020-21
Juventus dropped points for the second game running in the 2020-21 Serie A, as they were held to a 2-2 draw in the Derby della mole by city rivals Torino.
Cristiano Ronaldo salvaged a point for the visitors with a late header after Federico Chiesa's early lead was cancelled out by Antonio Sanabria's brace. It was too familiar a story for Juventus in the game. They dominated possession, had more shots on goal but failed to convert their chances.
Juventus started the game brightly. They had a couple of early chances, with Alvaro Morata trying his luck from long range and Federico Chiesa missing from close range.
The chances kept on coming for the visitors, who finally got the breakthrough in the 13th minute. Chiesa scored the opener in trademark fashion,, as he beat Salvatore Sirigu from close range after a quick one-two with Morata.
Torino responded soon and equalised in the 27th minute following some smart play after a throw near the Juventus box. Rolando Mandragora's fierce strike from outside the box was saved well by Wojciech Szczęsny, but Sanabria reacted well on the rebound to head past the helpless Polish international.
The reigning champions continued to dominate possession, but the scoreline remained even heading into the break.
Torino went ahead almost immediately after the break, with Sanabria bagging his second of the night after latching onto Dejan Kulusevski's careless back-pass and finding the roof of the net with a crisp finish.
After a long period of dominance, Juventus finally found a breakthrough, with Ronaldo, their saviour, by scoring a header in the 79th minute. The goal was initially ruled out for offside, but a VAR review confirmed that Juventus had indeed equalised.
Though Juventus were dominant throughout the game, the hosts had the better chances and could have bagged all three points without some brilliant saves from Szczęsny.
On that note, let's take a look at five talking points from the game.
#1 Federico Chiesa continues to impress for Juventus
Federico Chiesa was on the scoresheet yet again. The Italian winger has been in great form this term, scoring 12 goals across all competitions. Ten of them have come in 2021, which means he is hitting form at just the right time.
Only Cristiano Ronaldo has scored more goals than the 23-year-old in this period.
Chiesa has become one of the key players for Andrea Pirlo this season. After trying to play him in a wing-back position, it seems Pirlo has finally found the perfect position for Chiesa on the left side of midfield.
#2 Juventus concede two goals in a Serie A game for just the second time this year
Juventus have the best defensive record in the league but have struggled to keep clean sheets in their recent fixtures. They have managed to keep a shutout in just one of their last six league outings.
On Saturday, they conceded twice, as Sanabria scored a brace. That marked just the second time the Old Lady let in two goals in a league game this year, with their 2-0 loss against Inter Milan being the only other such game.
Nevertheless, Juventus are now nine points behind leaders Inter, with their title hopes getting slimmer with every passing game.
Also Read: 10 highest-paid players in the Serie A this season (2020-21).