Cristiano Ronaldo bagged a brace while Weston McKennie also scored as Juventus beat Crotone 3-0 in Serie A at the Allianz Stadium on Monday night.
Having been going through a dodgy run of results, Juventus needed to turn things around at the earliest, and as expected, they started strongly against Crotone. And, after having missed a sitter earlier in the game, Cristiano Ronaldo opened the scoring heading home an Alex Sandro cross from close range.
On the cusp of half-time, Ronaldo made it 2-0, brilliantly heading Aaron Ramsey’s hanging cross after the Portuguese’s initial effort from distance had been saved. The Bianconeri continued to control the proceedings with the bottom side hardly testing Gianluigi Buffon until a shot from Junior Messias a little past the hour mark which the veteran stopped.
Immediately after, Juventus went three ahead, killing off the game, as Weston McKennie plundered the ball into the back of the net after the visitors had failed to deal with a corner situation effectively. The reigning champions could have had more, but Ronaldo and Ramsey were denied while the likes of Alvaro Morata and Federico Chiesa missed chances.
Nonetheless, it was an important win for Juventus, who now move up to third place in the table, eight points adrift of league leaders Inter Milan. Here’s how we rated the performances of Andrea Pirlo’s men on the night at Allianz Stadium.
Gianluigi Buffon: 6/10
Handed a rare Serie A start in place of Wojciech Szczesny, the Juventus legend wasn’t called into action a great deal. Made a couple of routine stops to deny Messias and Simy in the second half.
With tonight's match against Crotone it's 654: Gigi Buffon becomes the footballer with the most number of appearances among the top 5 championships in Europe. ??? pic.twitter.com/5iXANgEJ6S
— Nisrin (@NisrinJuve) February 22, 2021
Danilo: 7/10
A solid outing from the Brazilian, who saw a lot of the ball on the night and used it effectively, completing 88% of his passes, including two key passes. Was solid in his defensive duties as well, making a game-high three interceptions as well as three clearances – the most by any Juventus player.
Merih Demiral: 6.5/10
Wasn’t tested a great deal by the Crotone attack which hardly looked dangerous. But impressed with his distribution from the back, misplacing just one of his 49 passes attempted on the night.
Matthijs de Ligt: 6.5/10
Much like his defensive partner, the Dutchman also had a straightforward outing wherein he wasn’t needed to do a lot of defensive work. Positive with the ball at his feet, completing 67 passes, including a key pass.
Alex Sandro: 7/10
Provided a good outlet down the left-hand side throughout his time on the pitch given that there was little for him to do defensively. Played three key passes on the night, including the assist for Ronaldo’s first goal of the night with a fine cross from the left.
Federico Chiesa: 7/10
? | Chiesa stats vs Crotone:
• 56 Touches.
• 83.3%➖Passes completed
• 1/3 Aerial duels won
• 4/6 Ground duels won
• 3/3 Accurate long balls
• 4/6 Dribbles completed
• 1/2 Shots on the target
• 4 Key passes
• 2 Big chances created pic.twitter.com/d566bkzw5Q— Nisrin (@NisrinJuve) February 22, 2021
The Player to Watch in our match preview, Chiesa was a lively customer throughout, posing a threat each time he pushed forward with pace. Produced a good cutback in the first half for Ronaldo, who failed to convert. Delivered some teasing crosses into the box and had an effort blocked off after the half-time break. Finished the game with three dribbles and four key passes.
Weston McKennie: 7.5/10
The more aggressive of the two Juventus central midfielders McKennie looked to push forward at every possible occasion and his runs made things uncomfortable for the visitors. Impressed with his industry and work-rate off the ball before finding the back of the net to make it 3-0 in the second half.
Rodrigo Bentancur: 6.5/10
After a disastrous outing in midweek against FC Porto, the Uruguayan managed to recover well although it helped that Crotone weren’t aggressive in their press to hurry him. This allowed him to play piercing passes forward while he was up to the task defensively as well, making two tackles and interceptions each.
Aaron Ramsey: 7/10
Aaron Ramsey created more chances than any other player against Crotone (5).
An assist for Cristiano Ronaldo’s second goal as well. pic.twitter.com/2ITRTiCJxZ
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) February 22, 2021
Lively, if not always effective. Made the most number of key passes (5) in the game and pounced on a loose ball to set Ronaldo up for his second goal with a hanging cross with his left foot. Completed 92% of his passes and also produced a couple of interceptions.
Dejan Kulusevski: 6/10
Sharp movement, good industry but the Swede did not pose much of a goal threat. Was preferred over Alvaro Morata once again and while it was by no means a bad performance, Kulusevski failed to make the most of it.
Cristiano Ronaldo: 8/10
Missed a couple of chances early in the game but redeemed himself soon after, making a brilliant run before heading home Sandro’s cross. Another perfectly timed run and jump allowed him to get on the end of Ramsey’s cross for the second. Should have had a hat-trick but was denied after the break. Back on top in the Serie A goalscoring charts with 18 strikes to his name.
Cristiano Ronaldo has now scored more Serie A goals than any other player this season (18).
Leaping highest once again. pic.twitter.com/uYCGAlXGKW
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) February 22, 2021
SUBSTITUTES
Nicolo Fagioli: 6/10
Replaced Bentancur for the final twenty minutes. Neat and tidy on the ball, made a couple of dribbles as well.
Federico Bernardeschi: N/A
Came on to replace Ramsey in the 76th minute. Shot over from a good position.
Alvaro Morata: N/A
On for Kulusevski with less than fifteen minutes left. Fired wide off the mark soon after coming on.
Gianluca Frabotta: N/A
Replaced Sandro in the 86th minute. Booked.
Alessandro Di Pardo: N/A
Late substitute for Chiesa.
