With the Serie A title in their sights, Juventus secured a 3-0 win over 10-man Lazio in Turin on Wednesday night to restore their nine-point advantage over Napoli.The Partenopei sent a message to their rivals on Tuesday with a thumping 6-0 win over Bologna, as they continue to ensure that the Scudetto race goes on.However, Massimiliano Allegri got the perfect reaction from his players as they dominated from the start to maintain their healthy advantage on their title rivals with just four games remaining this season.
The hosts were on the front-foot most of the first half and carved out numerous goalscoring opportunities but were wasteful at times, while Federico Marchetti was in inspired form.Paulo Dybala was the main threat for Allegri’s men, as he forced Marchetti into three great saves to ensure that the Biancocelesti remained in the game.
Meanwhile, Paul Pogba was also denied as he saw his volley turned away for a corner, before then spurning a glorious chance as Juve found themselves in a two-on-one situation.After receiving the pull back, the Frenchman scuffed his effort into the welcoming arms of Marchetti as Lazio appeared set to survive until the break.However, Mandzukic had other ideas as he applied the finishing touch to Pogba’s work in the build-up, with the Croatian international scoring his ninth goal of the season.Lazio’s hopes of mounting a comeback were dealt a severe blow just three minutes into the second half, with Patric receiving his second yellow card of the game.
Dybala once again tested Marchetti from the resulting free-kick, as the hosts continued to pepper the Lazio goal in search of more goals.The Argentine forward finally found a way to goal after Santiago Gentiletti dragged Leonardo Bonucci to the ground in the box, with Dybala making no mistake from the penalty spot to give his side a comfortable cushion.
His goalscoring exploits weren’t finished there as he added a third just after the hour mark, as Juve coasted to victory and made the most of their numerical advantage.Juventus are back in action against Fiorentina on Sunday night as they continue to edge closer to the Scudetto, while Lazio face Sampdoria with Simone Inzaghi hoping to get a reaction from his players after suffering his first loss since taking charge at the club.
