Serie A scores, takeaways: Juventus earn much-needed victory over Fiorentina; Spezia out of drop zone


Despite having different goals, both Juventus and Spezia entered this weekend’s Serie A action needing a win. Juve, after such an inconsistent start to the season, were looking to really start pushing the top four, while Spezia’s top-flight status is in risk, with points needed to escape the relegation zone and earn some breathing room. They both got exactly what they needed.

Here’s a look at the schedule, scores and what’s taken place so far in this weekend’s Serie A action:

Schedule and scores

All times Eastern

Friday
Empoli 2, Genoa 2

Saturday,
Spezia 1, Torino 0
Juventus 1, Fiorentina 0
Cagliari 1, Atalanta 2

Sunday
Venezia vs. Roma, 6:30 a.m. (Paramount+)
Sampdoria vs. Bologna, 9 a.m. (Paramount+)
Udinese vs. Sassuolo, 9 a.m. (Paramount+)
Napoli vs. Verona, 12 p.m. (Paramount+)
Lazio vs. Salernitana, 12 p.m. (Paramount+)
Milan vs. Inter, 2:45 p.m.  (Paramount+)

Cuadrado helps Juve and haunts former club

Juventus winger/full-back Juan Cuadrado scored the dramatic, late winner against his former club Fiorentina on Saturday with an incredible play. The talented Colombian got down the right, used his flair and pulled off a strike from the tightest of angles for the 1-0 win in the first minute of added time. Take a look:

Boy did they need that. Juve weren’t particularly sharp, registering an xG of just 0.74, and lady luck was a bit on the Old Lady’s side. Their xG was by far their lowest of the Serie A season and just the second time their xG was under 1.0. Their previous worse as the 0.99 they registered in the 2-1 loss to Sassuolo on Oct. 27.

And as you’ll see here, they did absolutely nothing in the first half, not even registering a single shot.

The victory moves Juve into eighth place in the table but still provisionally four points back of the top four, with three teams ahead of them for that coveted spot. 

Spezia earn clutch win

For just the third time this season, Spezia won a Serie A match and are now in 15th, two points clear of the drop zone after beating Torino, 1-0. Despite recording an xG of just 0.28 to Torino’s 0.51, it was Jacopo Sala’s incredible goal just prior to the hour mark that gave the hosts the win. Take a look at this one:

What an effort that was, and that was all that was needed as the defense stepped up. Spezia didn’t concede a goal in a Serie A match for the first time all season. They entered the weekend as the worst defense in the league but recorded that cleansheet and got a momentum-building victory entering the international break.





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