It’s fair to say that a lot has gone on since Juventus eased to a 2-0 home win against Salernitana in Serie A on Sunday afternoon. News of Mattia De Sciglio’s maiden Azzurri call-up since 2019 was blown out of the water by a pretty significant Paulo Dybala update.
The serenity of the weekend, following Juve’s baptism of fire in the week, preceded a frantic Monday as it was revealed that Dybala will not be renewing his Juventus contract. He’ll leave the club as a free agent this summer.
This huge news has completely overshadowed Sunday’s forgettable but much-needed triumph. A response was imperative after Wednesday’s embarrassment and the victory kept Juve’s faint scudetto hopes alive with their position in the top-four secure.
3 takeaways from Juventus’ 2-0 win over Salernitana
So, for a few minutes, I ask you to brush aside your disappointment over the Dybala news and enjoy these three takeaways from the 2-0 win over Salernitana.
Vlahovic & Dybala combine
The supposed tense dispute between Dybala and Max Allegri didn’t prevent the manager from naming the Argentine in Sunday’s starting XI for his full return to action.
La Joya partnered Dusan Vlahovic up front for Juventus with the Serb desperate to add to his goal haul having gone scoreless in seven of his ten appearances for Juventus heading into Sunday’s game against Serie A’s worst defence.
In their few appearances together, we’ve seen Dybala drift in off the right with Alvaro Morata playing closer to focal point Vlahovic. However, in Morata’s absence on Sunday, their relationship was a little different.
To begin, Juve’s possession structure resembled a 3-2-4-1 with Vlahovic as the lone forward who ran both channels and dropped deep to aid the build-up. Dybala, meanwhile, primarily operated from the right half-space amid a typically fluid display. Although, the Argentine was prepared to run in behind when space presented itself behind the Salernitana defence.
The pair combined superbly in the first half with Vlahovic teeing up Dybala for the opener. The 22-year-old finally returned the favour after the Argentine expertly assisted his debut goal against Hellas Verona. Vlahovic then spurned a golden opportunity following some brilliant work from Dybala after being fed in behind by Luca Pellegrini. His pirouette to create the chance was majestic, but the Serb’s heavy first touch allowed Luigi Sepe to swarm.
Vlahovic swiftly atoned by heading home Mattia De Sciglio’s cross and it would’ve been an injustice had he not got on the scoresheet. He terrorised Norbert Gyömbér in the opening period as Dybala made the most of the space gifted to him by his partner’s dogged running.
Enjoy watching these two combine while you can!