Luiz stars as Juventus beat 10-man Lecce 2-0 to lift Spalletti pressure
Luiz delivers career-first to spark Juventus revival
Douglas Luiz produced the best performance of his Juventus career to inspire a much-needed 2-0 Serie A victory over Lecce at the Stadio Ettore Giardiniero, easing the mounting pressure on manager Luciano Spalletti.
The Brazilian midfielder clipped a free-kick over the Lecce defence to set up Weston McKennie's 29th-minute opener before sweeping home his first goal for the club four minutes before the break, securing the Bianconeri's first league win since September 20 against Atalanta.
Match report
Lecce almost stunned the visitors inside 30 seconds as Konan N'Dri blocked Guglielmo Vicario's clearance on the edge of the six-yard box, but the effort flew just wide. Amar Fatah then curled high and wide of the top-right corner as the hosts carried the greater threat without truly testing Vicario.
Juventus struck with their first real attempt. Luiz won a central free-kick and dinked it over the defence to pick out McKennie, who guided a scuffed first-time finish over Wladimiro Falcone. Randal Kolo Muani fired wide and prodded another chance off target shortly after as Juve found their rhythm, and Luiz doubled the lead on 41 minutes, sweeping a long-range effort past Falcone despite the goalkeeper getting a hand to it — his first goal for the club, found via a Federico Gatti lay-off.
Lecce rallied after the break. Oumar Ngom and Kialonda Gaspar both saw efforts saved by Vicario, who also kept out Paco Esteban and N'Dri, while Nick Woltemade blazed over from close range. A desperate Federico Gatti block deflected Youssef Maleh's strike over the bar, and Jeremie Boga and Juan Cabal spurned late chances for Juve from improbable angles. With only seconds remaining, Gaspar was shown a second yellow card for dissent — his protest against the referee proving too obvious to ignore — ruling him out of Lecce's next match against Frosinone.
Spalletti breathes after turbulent week
Spalletti had come under intense scrutiny following a topsy-turvy start to the season, with a 3-0 home defeat to Lazio and a 2-2 Europa League draw with Stade Rennais piling on the pressure. The Bianconeri had won just one of their last four games in all competitions before facing Lecce (D2 L1).
The victory lifts Juventus to seventh in the Serie A table. Three points provide a timely boost, although questions will remain after they struggled to impose themselves for large spells of the contest.
Juventus were crippled by injuries, with only 17 outfield players available. Nico Gonzalez, Zeki Celik, Kenan Yildiz, Francisco Conceicao, Manuel Locatelli, Khephren Thuram, Jeff Ekhator and Kamil Grabara were all on the treatment table, while Lecce were without Lassana Coulibaly, Santiago Pierotti, Ivan Ilic and Medon Berisha.
Luiz covers the cracks
Luiz pulled the strings before the interval, scoring and providing an assist in the same match for the first time in his career in the top five European leagues — his 261st appearance at that level. He was the only Juventus player to create more than one chance (two), and led the team in touches (94), accurate passes (64 of 78) and final-third passes (28).
The Bianconeri were clinical, scoring with both of their shots on target, but managed only eight attempts worth 1.07 expected goals, compared with Lecce's 16 shots (0.94 xG). It is hardly a surprise Juve prevailed, though: no side has won more Serie A away matches against Lecce than Juventus (13, level with Inter). Lecce's last victory over Juventus came in February 2011, since when they have suffered nine defeats — home and away — either side of four 1-1 draws.