Juventus secured back-to-back wins in Serie A as they edged past Sampdoria 3-2 at the Allianz Stadium.
The hosts started sharply and were a constant threat in transition before Paulo Dybala, who’d soon exit the field in tears with a reported hamstring issue, opened the scoring with a vintage strike. Juventus then doubled the lead from the spot through Leonardo Bonucci, but Sampdoria responded almost immediately through Maya Yoshida.
A nervy second half was in store but Manuel Locatelli eased the tension by tapping in his first Juve goal to give the Bianconeri a 3-1 lead. Samp just wouldn’t go away, though, and they pulled another goal back through Antonio Candreva.
There was no grandstand finish, however, as Juve held on for a 3-2 win.
Here are our Juventus player ratings from Sunday’s victory.
Goalkeeper & Defenders
Mattia Perin (GK) – 6/10 – A change of goalkeeper couldn’t halt Juve’s clean sheet curse. That’s now 20 games without one. Nevertheless, on his first Juve start since 2019, Perin wasn’t terribly busy despite conceding twice. They were strikes he could do little to prevent.
Juan Cuadrado (RB) – 5.5/10 – The Colombian returned to the back four on Sunday after starting the season in a more advanced role. He was perhaps more conservative than anticipated from right-back, although he did produce one magnificent cross in the first half. However, Cuadrado was certainly at fault for Candreva’s goal.
Matthijs de Ligt (CB) – 7.5/10 – He’s just so good. De Ligt was brilliant again. Dominant in the air and all-encompassing on the ground. The Dutchman read the game superbly today, with the vast majority of his defensive actions executed to the highest order. Little to fault.
Leonardo Bonucci (CB) – 6/10 – A mixed bag from Bonucci. After dispatching a penalty, he was beaten in the air by Yoshida for Sampdoria’s first. It certainly wasn’t the most convincing of displays.
Alex Sandro (LB) – 6.5/10 – The Brazilian returned to his conservative self in possession, although his aggressive pressing paid dividends in the first half. His timing was perfect at times, with Juve seeking to trap Samp in wide areas. Sandro also produced one or two timely defensive interventions.