Paulo Dybala came off the bench to score an 89th-minute penalty and rescue a point for Juventus in the Derby d’Italia with Inter.
Edin Dzeko’s seventh goal in just nine appearances gave the Nerazzurri a 17th-minute lead, the hosts taking full advantage of their temporary numerical advantage after Federico Bernadeschi was forced off with a shoulder injury.
Juventus responded with Alvaro Morata stinging the hands of Samir Handanovic, but apart from that, the visitors – who started Federico Chiesa on the bench – offered little in attack in the first half.
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Rather than attempting to build on their momentum, however, Simone Inzaghi’s retreated and dropped increasingly deep after the restart in a bid to protect their lead.
The introduction of Chiesa and Dybala off the bench after 65 minutes and gave Juventus a new impetus, and Massimiliano Allegri’s decision paid dividends when Alex Sandro was awarded a controversial penalty, given after the referee re-watched the incident on the pitch-side monitor.
Inzaghi was sent off for his protestations and Dybala held his nerve to send Handanovic the wrong way and ensure the Old Lady shared a share of the spoils.
The draw leaves Inter seven points adrift of the leaders Napoli in third, while Juventus are three points further behind in sixth.
TALKING POINT – Two points dropped for Inter
After a dominant first half display, it appeared the Nerazzurri had their great rivals exactly where they wanted them. With Dybala and Chiesa starting on the bench, Juventus had offered little in attack, while Inter were overrunning them in midfield.
But Inzaghi’s decision to drop his defensive line significantly – to abandon any notion of playing attacking football and ultimately try to protect a slender lead for such a long period – appears to have cost his side three much-needed points. The Inter boss will be livid about the referee’s decision to award a penalty, but Inter would arguably have had the game killed off by then had he been a little braver in his tactics.
Meanwhile, after a largely insipid performance, Allegri will be delighted his side were able to extend their unbeaten run to 10 games unbeaten in all competitions. Just a number of weeks ago, the Old Lady were in the bottom three, but fast forward to now and they’re just a point behind the top-four places.
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