TURIN: Juventus’ Serie A title ambitions are all but over after it suffered a 0-1 defeat at Cagliari on Saturday, in a game where the visiting side was unable to make its domination of possession count.
Juventus sits fifth in the standings on 39 points, 10 behind leader Inter Milan, which beat Udinese 1-0 on Saturday.
Cagliari is 15th on 22 points, the win taking it eight points away from the relegation zone. Cagliari failed to register a shot attempt in the opening half but scored a shock winner when Luca Mazzitelli scored with 25 minutes remaining to end Juve’s six-match unbeaten league run.
The visiting side dominated possession early on without creating any real danger until Cagliari ‘keeper Elia Caprile saved Fabio Miretti’s strike from just inside the area and the game remained goalless after a dour first half.
Juventus winger Kenan Yildiz did the hard work on the right, racing down the left wing dancing past three challenges to get himself into the box but his finish was well off target and minutes later Cagliari took a shock lead.
Napoli ended a run of three consecutive draws with a 1-0 win over Sassuolo at the Diego Armando Stadium in Naples.
Stanislav Lobotka scored his first goal in more than three years, volleying in a rebound in the seventh minute after Sassuolo goalkeeper Arijanet Muric could only parry a shot by Eljif Elmas.
The win, however, might have come at a cost. Elmas and Napoli teammate Amir Rrahmani came off injured in the second half.
Rrahmani’s will be more concerning as it appeared to be a muscle issue in his left thigh, while Elmas felt dizzy after taking a knock to the head. Agencies
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