TURIN, Italy — Cristiano Ronaldo scored a thumping penalty and created goals for Paulo Dybala and Gonzalo Higuain as Juventus hammered 10-man Lecce 4-0 on Friday to stretch their lead over Lazio at the top of Serie A to seven points.
With Lecce's Fabio Lucioni getting a straight red card for a clumsy challenge after 32 minutes, Juve took the lead in the 53rd when Ronaldo fed Dybala, who clipped a superb shot into the top corner.
It’s been a while, but Hirving Lozano’s goal Tuesday night might just be the spark Chucky needs to earn his spot back in Napoli’s lineup.
Chucky Lozano hadn’t appeared for Gli Azzurri since Feb. 9, when came on for the final 14 minutes of a defeat to Lecce. Since Gennaro Gattuso took over on Dec. 10, Lozano had made just six appearances (one start) while not appearing in 10 matches before Tuesday.
Juventus coach Maurizio Sarri has rubbished suggestions of a falling out with midfielder Miralem Pjanic and is confident Cristiano Ronaldo will quickly bounce back from his disappointing restart to the season.
Sarri has quickly found himself under pressure after Juventus were beaten on penalties by Napoli in Wednesday's Coppa Italia final.
The only other game they have contested since the three-month stoppage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic was the Coppa semifinal at home to AC Milan five days earlier, which also ended 0-0 after Ronaldo missed a penalty.
Last night in Rome, Napoli captured the Coppa Italia by defeating Juventus on penalties to send Naples into raptures. There are few cities on the planet that are so culturally and socially intertwined with their football club, and a first major honor since 2014 — coupled with the fact that it was achieved against Cristiano Ronaldo and 94-year rival Juve — drew fans out onto the streets to celebrate into the early hours.
Serie A has not even restarted following the coronavirus stoppage, yet pressure is already mounting on Juventus coach Maurizio Sarri following his side's failure to win the Coppa Italia.
Napoli stunned Juventus when they won 4-2 on penalties after a 0-0 draw to claim the Coppa Italia on Wednesday and bring their fiery coach Gennaro Gattuso the first major trophy of his coaching career.
Paulo Dybala and Danilo missed Juve's first two efforts in the shootout while Napoli converted all of their attempts to win the trophy for the sixth time while also ending Juve's hopes of winning the treble this season.
It was the first title to be settled in the Italian season which has just restarted after a three-month hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Coach Gennaro Gattuso kicked Chucky Lozano out of Napoli training on Monday, according to reports, putting into question the Mexican winger’s future in Italy.
Lozano was a breakout star with PSV Eindhoven, tallying 40 goals and 23 assists in three seasons in the Netherlands. Combined with a strong showing at the 2018 World Cup with El Tri, Chucky moved to Napoli in August for a club-record $46.5 million.
Christian Eriksen spent seven seasons with Tottenham; David Ospina played with Arsenal for four seasons. The former North London rivals faced off in Italy in the Coppa Italia semifinals on Saturday, and the result was a stunning Christian Eriksen olimpico vs Napoli that nutmegged the former Gunner.
In a recent interview, Arsenal and Germany goalkeeper Bernd Leno called out the Bundesliga for its monotony as Bayern Munich prepares to win an eighth straight title.
The first reaction to reading his quote is typically: "Says the guy who's in ninth place and 42 points behind Liverpool.”
Bernd Leno is bored of the Bundesliga: