Serie A Week 2: Diego Fuels Juventus' 3-1 Victory Against Roma
September 1st 2009 04:10
Much has been said about Real Madrid and Manchester City's spending frenzy and the Ibrahimovic-Eto'o swap between Inter and Barcelona during the summer. One club which has been quietly adding players to its roster is now turning heads in the Serie A. Coming off of a good season where they finished second, Juventus added depth to its line-up by getting Fabio Cannavaro back as well as adding Brazil's Felipe Melo and Werder Bremen's Diego in midfield. After watching him play in the past two games, I think it's safe to say that Diego is one of this year's most underrated acquisitions.
After last week's display where he put his own stamp to the game with an assist and some nifty ball control, the Brazilian midfielder was at it again, scoring two goals in Juve's victory over AS Roma. Both goals came at key moments of the game. After an overly physical opening twenty minutes, the bianconeri struck first on a defensive mistake by Roma. Cassetti failed to properly control the ball inside the centre circle which led to a breathtaking run by Diego from the halfway line all the way to Julio Sergio's box where he skillfully struck the ball with the outside of his boot to beat the goalkeeper at the far post.
Roma replied less than five minutes later with a stunning goal of their own. Midfielder Daniele de Rossi fired one of his trademark long-range missiles after a quickly taken free-kick to put both teams level in the 28th minute. The visitors almost took the lead before the break but Buffon won his duel against Totti to keep the game tied at halftime.
The bianconeri dominated the opening minutes of the second half. However, their strikers seemed to be firing blanks as Amauri was twice denied by Julio Sergio while Iaquinta always seemed to be close but not quite there. Juventus fans could finally cheer when Diego, served by Iaquinta, beat Sergio for the second time with a powerful strike, this time from the right side of the box. Yet Roma didn't lose hope. Mexes' disallowed goal and Totti's shot on Buffon's post in the 78th minute served as reminders that they were still in the game.
After numerous failed counterattacks, it was Juventus' other summer acquisition who finally killed the game in the 92nd minute. Midfielder Melo, in his first league game in the black and white shirt, fired an unstoppable strike to put the score at 3-1 and thus ensure victory for the hosts.
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With those two wins, Juventus are now sitting in second place in the standings while Roma is having one of their worst starts in history with two consecutive defeats. While Juventus aren't firing on all cylinders yet – Amauri seems to have lost his scoring touch and Del Piero still hasn't played – the new guys' contributions in these past two weeks show that they mean business. It could be an interesting season in Serie A this year.
Juventus line-up: Gianluigi Buffon; Zdenek Grygera, Fabio Cannavaro, Gorgio Chiellini, Paolo De Ceglie (Nicola Legrottaglie, 73rd); Tiago, Felipe Melo, Claudio Marchisio (Mauro Camoranesi, 61st), Diego (Christian Poulsen, 84th); Amauri, Vincenzo Iaquinta.
After last week's display where he put his own stamp to the game with an assist and some nifty ball control, the Brazilian midfielder was at it again, scoring two goals in Juve's victory over AS Roma. Both goals came at key moments of the game. After an overly physical opening twenty minutes, the bianconeri struck first on a defensive mistake by Roma. Cassetti failed to properly control the ball inside the centre circle which led to a breathtaking run by Diego from the halfway line all the way to Julio Sergio's box where he skillfully struck the ball with the outside of his boot to beat the goalkeeper at the far post.
Roma replied less than five minutes later with a stunning goal of their own. Midfielder Daniele de Rossi fired one of his trademark long-range missiles after a quickly taken free-kick to put both teams level in the 28th minute. The visitors almost took the lead before the break but Buffon won his duel against Totti to keep the game tied at halftime.
The bianconeri dominated the opening minutes of the second half. However, their strikers seemed to be firing blanks as Amauri was twice denied by Julio Sergio while Iaquinta always seemed to be close but not quite there. Juventus fans could finally cheer when Diego, served by Iaquinta, beat Sergio for the second time with a powerful strike, this time from the right side of the box. Yet Roma didn't lose hope. Mexes' disallowed goal and Totti's shot on Buffon's post in the 78th minute served as reminders that they were still in the game.
After numerous failed counterattacks, it was Juventus' other summer acquisition who finally killed the game in the 92nd minute. Midfielder Melo, in his first league game in the black and white shirt, fired an unstoppable strike to put the score at 3-1 and thus ensure victory for the hosts.
Watch More Football Videos at MySoccerPlace.net
With those two wins, Juventus are now sitting in second place in the standings while Roma is having one of their worst starts in history with two consecutive defeats. While Juventus aren't firing on all cylinders yet – Amauri seems to have lost his scoring touch and Del Piero still hasn't played – the new guys' contributions in these past two weeks show that they mean business. It could be an interesting season in Serie A this year.
Juventus line-up: Gianluigi Buffon; Zdenek Grygera, Fabio Cannavaro, Gorgio Chiellini, Paolo De Ceglie (Nicola Legrottaglie, 73rd); Tiago, Felipe Melo, Claudio Marchisio (Mauro Camoranesi, 61st), Diego (Christian Poulsen, 84th); Amauri, Vincenzo Iaquinta.
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