Juventus strengthened their push for a top-four finish in Serie A after edging past Udinese 1-0, a result that piles pressure on Como and AS Roma in the race for Champions League places.
The narrow victory also moved coach Luciano Spalletti to within touching distance of a historic milestone, leaving him just one win away from his 300th triumph in Italy’s top flight.
Spalletti now sits on 299 Serie A victories following the hard-fought success in Turin.
The decisive moment arrived late in the first half when Jeremie Boga finished from close range. The goal was crafted brilliantly by teenage sensation Kenan Yildiz, who burst down the left flank before delivering a low cross that Boga calmly turned home.
Yildiz nearly added another assist after the break when he again sparked a dangerous move that ended with Francisco Conceição finding the net.
However, the effort was ruled out following a VAR review which judged that Teun Koopmeiners was standing in an offside position and obstructing goalkeeper Maduka Okoye’s view.
Despite the disallowed goal, Juventus held firm to secure the three points, climbing into the top four ahead of a crucial showdown between Como and Roma.
Since Spalletti took charge of Juventus on October 30, only Inter Milan and AC Milan have collected more points in Serie A than the Bianconeri during that period, underlining the team’s steady progress.
A major driving force behind that rise has been Yildiz. The 20-year-old has now been involved in 15 league goals this season, scoring nine and providing six assists, becoming the first Juventus player since 2004-05 to reach that mark in Serie A before turning 21.
Across the league, only two other players have matched his all-round attacking impact this campaign: Inter’s Federico Dimarco, who has six goals and 14 assists, and Como’s Nico Paz with nine goals and six assists.
