04 June 2023
Juventus collected all three points in Udine on the final day of the season thanks to a second-half goal scored by Federico Chiesa.
The winger curled home with just over 20 minutes to play in a match that had seen Leonardo Bonucci hit the crossbar as the Bianconeri wrapped up the campaign with yet another clean sheet.
THE MATCH
A noisy Dacia Arena welcomed the two sets of players for the closing encounter of the campaign, and the match almost got off to a flying start. A mistake by home keeper Marco Silvestri gifted possession to Fabio Miretti inside the area, but the young midfielder delayed too long, allowing the Udinese defence to thwart the danger.
On the hosts' first attack, a cross picked out Beto inside the six-yard box. The striker couldn’t keep his header down.
Juve increased the pressure on the home defence as the game entered the half hour mark. First a fiercely delivered free-kick from Juan Cuadrado brought out a finger-tip interception from Silverstri, which was crucial to take the ball away from the lurking Leonardo Bonucci - who shortly after would come closest to opening the scoring in the first half.
Arek Milik and Federico Chiesa combined well at the edge of the penalty box. Milik’s return pass sent Chiesa on the run, but his shot was deflected for a corner. From the set piece, Milik’s glancing header was met by Bonucci, who redirected the ball goalwards, only to see his header rebound off the underside of the crossbar.
Goalless at the break. To add some impetus to the attack, Massimiliano Allegri swapped Filip Kostić with Samuel Iling jr. The Next Gen talent made an instant impact. A cross from the winger was flicked just wide by Chiesa.
Like in the first period, Juve took control of proceedings at the midway stage of the half. Adrien Rabiot drilled a shot into the side netting when sent through on goal. Five minutes later Cuadrado cut inside and unleashed a shot that rose over the crossbar.
But the goal was on its way.
Manuel Locatelli turned inside the Udinese area and released Chiesa. The number 7 took a couple of touches before firing an unstoppable shot into the far corner.
There were still over 20 minutes to play, however, and both sides created further chances. Sandi Lovrić run straight at the Juve defence before letting fly, forcing Wojciech Szczęsny into his first real save. The keeper was called on to repeat his act by keeping out another long range effort from Nehuen Perez.
In between the two opportunities for the hosts, Manuel Locatelli came close to grabbing his first goal of the season. However, his flick was brilliantly saved by Silvestri.
Despite over eight minutes of time added on, Chiesa’s finish remained the only goal of the game as Juventus completed the anomalous season in seventh place.
UDINESE 0-1 JUVENTUS (HT: 0-0)
Scorer: 68′ Chiesa
UDINESE: Silvestri, Abankwah (58′ Cocetta), Perez, Guessand (79′ Buta); Pereyra, Samardzic, Walace (47′ Arslan), Lovric, Udogie; Thauvin (79′ Vivaldo), Beto (79′ Nestorovski). Subs not used: Padelli, Piana, Ulineia, Centis, Russo, Bassi, Castagnaviz. Coach: Sottil.
JUVENTUS: Szczęsny; Gatti, Bonucci (90’+3′ Rugani), Danilo; Cuadrado, Locatelli, Rabiot, Kostic (46′ Iling); Miretti (61′ Di Maria); Chiesa (78′ Paredes), Milik (78′ Kean). Subs not used: Pinsoglio, Perin, Alex Sandro, Barbieri, Riccio, Sersanti. Coach: Allegri.
Referee: Guida
BOOKINGS: 38′ Gatti, 88′ Paredes, 88′ Arslan, 89′ Nestorovski
