Turin, April 4 (BUS): A penalty kick in the first half was enough for champions Inter Milan to score a decisive 1-0 victory over Juventus, prompting Simone Inzaghi’s team to return to the Serie A title race.
Juventus missed a host of chances in the opening period, with veteran defender Giorgio Chiellini mostly condemned for failing, and their extravagance proving costly as Inter were awarded a first-half stoppage-time penalty after a VAR review.
The hosts were outraged by the penalty being awarded, but felt justice was done when Hakan Calhanoglu’s penalty was parried by Vujic Cesena, only to order the referee to take the ball back, which the Turkish midfielder turned to give Inter the lead, Reuters reported.
The goal did not change the balance of play, as Paulo Dybala and Duzan Vlahovic came close to a tie in the second half, before Inter goalkeeper Samir Handanovic passed Dennis Zakaria’s superb shot into the post.
The movement remained in one direction until the final whistle, but Juventus, who had 23 shots on goal against five for Inter, could not push the pressure, as the guests stuck to the three-point deduction.
Juventus’ first league defeat since November left their score of 59 points in fourth place, four points behind Inter in third, and the league champions are now three points behind leaders AC Milan.
“Now we can say that Juventus has dropped out of the Scudetto,” Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri told DAZN. “We have to try to score as many points as possible to keep fourth.
“It’s been a bad start this year but as many players have grown up, we have become an important team that still needs to improve.
“After tonight’s game, Inter are the favorites for the Scudetto.”
Juventus scored 16 league games unbeaten ahead of Sunday’s derby Italia, bringing them back into the top four struggle as well as the title race.
Inter helped one win in their previous seven league games to the Juventus mission, and it looked like Allegri’s side would have the victory that would have made them outshine the champions as they dominated the team from the start.
The crossbar Chiellini saved from close range early on, with Alvaro Morata and Dybala both failing to find the target from good positions.
More holes came and went before the chaos surrounding the penalty decision erupted. After a second look at the stadium screen, the referee ruled that Denzel Dumfries had fouled in the penalty area.
Szczesny was looking to save a penalty for the fourth time in a row in Serie A, and he guessed correctly, but Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt crossed the penalty area before the kick was taken, so Calhanoglu got another chance, which he didn’t miss. The Juventus protests continued for a while after that.
Fellahovich, who bagged big money in January, should have been back in the tie after a clever turn early in the second, as should Dybala from another good position, but that won’t go to the hosts.
Inter dug in late and survived several other fears, but defended his life, celebrating victory at the final whistle, knowing just how important a first away win over Juventus in a decade at the end of the season was.
“It is an essential step for us,” Inzaghi told DAZN. “We are chasing Milan and Napoli, we know that we lost points recently, but we will try to get them back in the remaining eight matches.”
“I remember at the beginning of the season what people were saying, I remember that Inter had not won at Juventus in 10 years. However, it is still a starting point.”
Elsewhere in Serie A on Sunday, Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s first-half goal was enough to seal Roma’s 1-0 win over Sampdoria to move Jose Mourinho’s side into fifth, while Udinese pulled out of the relegation zone with a 5-1 crush. Cagliari.