MILAN, Italy – Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice to save a point for Juventus at 10 in a 2-2 draw at Roma as Napoli beat Genoa 6-0 in Serie A on Sunday
Champions Juventus were down 2-1 and a man down after an hour at Stadio Olimpico after a brace from Jordan Veretout for the hosts and the expulsion of Adrien Rabiot
But an imposing header from Ronaldo grabbed the equalizer in the 69th minute to avoid giving a first defeat to new Juventus coach Andrea Pirlo
« We are at the start of the season, with a new coach But the team is working well, I am confident for the future
Edin Dzeko was back on the front lines of Roma after his failed transfer to Juventus as the Bosnian missed last week’s trip to Verona which ended in a forfeit loss for the capital for fielding an unregistered player
Instead, new Juventus signing Alvaro Morata has secured his first start following his transfer from Atletico Madrid earlier this week
But the champions were pushed hard by the hosts with Veretout opening on the spot in the 31st minute after a handball from Rabiot
The French midfielder added a second shortly before the break just after Ronaldo had equalized for the first time
Another handball, this time that of Lorenzo Pellegrini, saw Juventus receive a penalty allowing Ronaldo to register
The Portuguese got his second 20 minutes from time when his header met a Danilo cross seven minutes after Rabiot was sent off for a second yellow card
« Ronaldo gives us a lot, not just for goals, at the end when we were down a man he ran a lot », said Pirlo
« Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to test game solutions in the preseason, so we have to do those tests during these matches
Roma coach Paulo Fonseca added: « We had a good game, but I’m not happy with the result »
Hirving Lozano scored twice as Napoli swept away coronavirus-stricken Genoa as AC Milan continued their win without Zlatan Ibrahimovic with a 2-0 win over promoted Crotone
« The result is a bit misleading, if we hadn’t scored the second goal quickly in the second half I probably would have changed the setup, » said coach Gennaro Gattuso
« In the first half we suffered a bit, even with a lot of chances, we almost conceded a goal We lacked a bit of balance, we still have to improve »
Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen secured his first start for Napoli, having stepped off the bench to pass the Southerners past Parma in their opener last week
The club’s record signing Osimhen again impressed against a Genoa side playing without first-choice goalkeeper Mattia Perin, who tested positive for coronavirus
After the break the traffic was one-way, Piotr Zielinski clinging to a clever kick from Osimhen’s back heel for the second just seconds after the restart
Zielinski then helped prepare Dries Mertens for third place just ahead of the hour before Lozano struck again after confusion in the Genoa defense
Substitute Matteo Politano wrapped up in the sixth with 20 minutes left to give Napoli a maximum of six points after their opening two games
The only bad news for Gattuso is that Lorenzo Insigne was limping with a left thigh injury ahead of their clash with champion Juventus next week
Milan meanwhile, without star Ibrahimovic who tested positive for COVID-19, also has injury issues after Croatian striker Ante Rebic fell badly on his left arm
Franck Kessie scored his first penalty goal just before the break after a foul on Rebic, with Spaniard Brahim Diaz on loan from Real Madrid adding a second four minutes later
« The good news is that there are no fractures, it decreases recovery time, » said coach Stefano Pioli of Rebic
Juventus FC, UNES Roma, Serie A, Cristiano Ronaldo, Álvaro Morata, Andrea Pirlo
World news – GB – Football: Ronaldo doubles saves point for Juventus at Roma
SOURCE: https://www.w24news.com
