19 March 2022
Juventus made the trip to Naples knowing they were facing a team that was enjoying their best moment of the season. The Bianconere put on a dominant display and earned victory through goals from Lina Hurting on 25’ and Arianno Caruso on 70’. At the other end, Pauline Payraud-Magnin was rarely called into action and celebrated her recent 30th birthday with a clean sheet.
FRESH LOOK
Juventus set out determined to pick up from where they left off following last week’s thrashing of Milan in the Italian Cup. With one eye on the Champions League quarter final in midweek, the trio Martina Lenzini, Andrea Staskova and Barbara Bonansea were all spared the trip to Naples as Joe Montemurro freshened up the starting XI.
Julia Grosso partnered Sofie Pedersen in the centre of the pitch, but the real innovation came in attack, where Cristiana Girelli was supported by Lina Hurtig and Amanda Nilden.
FRONT THREE
Four minutes after Hurtig had sent a warning shot over the crossbar, on 25’ the front three linked up to give the Bianconere the lead. Girelli’s precise pass played Nilden in behind the Napoli defence. The number 5 delivered an inch-perfect cross for her compatriot Hurtig, who completed the move with a simple tap-in.
The team from Campania struggled to get a foothold in the game as Juventus continued to move the ball around sharply. Strong play in midfield from Grosso set up Lisa Boattin. The left-back’s shot was net bound until Rachele Baldi in the Napoli goal produced a splendid one-handed save.
The first chance for Napoli came in the closing seconds of the opening half. A turn of pace by Kaja Erzin saw her outrun Boattin and Linda Sembrandt before Sara Gama intervened with a crucial tackle.
ADVANTAGE EXTENDED
The Bianconere maintained concentration high as they sought to extend their advantage after the interval. The first chance fell to Girelli, who shot over from close range. However, leading the way was Grosso. The Olympic gold medalist left three opponents in her wake as she burst forward from the middle of the field. She fed Arianna Caruso at the edge of the area, but the Napoli defence deflected the shot for a corner.
Grosso then had an opportunity herself, but her shot from 18 yards lacked power. Montemurro decided that fresh legs would make the difference and brought on Agnese Bonfantini and Valentina Cernoia.
Cernoia was immediately involved in the thick of the action. She outpaced the Napoli defence and cut an inviting pass across the face of goal for Arianna Caruso, whose shot was blocked. The midfielder would not be denied for long as a couple of minutes later, Pedersen showed excellent awareness to find Girelli, who had taken up a position wide inside the area. Her cross was this time finished by Caruso.
That was Pedersen’s and Caruso’s last involvement in the game, replaced by Martina Rosucci and Annahita Zamanian. Both new entries continued to push the Bianconere forward and while Rosucci had a shot that whistled just wide of the far post, Zamanian’s effort was blocked by Baldi, but there were to be no more goals in the game.
Juventus collected three important points to keep their title defence on track, demonstrating to have rediscovered their swagger at this crucial juncture of the season.
NAPOLI 0-2 JUVENTUS (HT: 0-1)
SCORERS: 25’ Hurtig (J), 70’ Caruso (J)
NAPOLI: Baldi; Abrahamsson, Corrado (61’ Acuti), Garnier, Awona; Colombo (46’ Severini), Errico (72’ Pinna), Mauri; Erzen, Jaimes (82’ Goldoni), Toniolo.
Subs not used: Aguirre, Chiavaro, Schettino, Botta, Caputo
Coach: Domenichetti.
JUVENTUS: Peyraud-Magnin; Hyyrynen, Gama, Sembrant (79’ Lundorf), Boattin; Caruso (74’ Rosucci), Pedersen (74’ Zamanian), Grosso; Hurtig (67’ Bonfantini), Girelli, Nilden (67’ Cernoia).
Subs not used: Aprile, Forcinella, Panzeri, Giai.
Coach: Montemurro.
REFEREE: Di Marco
