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Juventus’ Serie A title hopes suffered another blow after they fell to a disappointing 1-0 defeat against struggling Benevento at the Allianz Stadium on Sunday.
Juventus came into this tie on the back of a five-game unbeaten streak in which they grabbed 13 points from a possible 15.
They were looking to leapfrog AC Milan into second place in Serie A and remain within touching distance of league leaders Inter Milan.
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The game opened with Juventus having the upper hand, but they failed to convert their chances and take the lead.
The hosts were rewarded for their relentless probing when referee Rosario Abisso awarded them a penalty.
However, Abisso overturned the decision after a review by the VAR monitor revealed Benevento’s Daam Foulon controlled the ball with his chest in the penalty area, and not his arm.
Juventus continued to dominate proceedings and Cristiano Ronaldo opened the scoring with a sweetly struck finish. However, the goal was ruled out for offside.
Juventus dropped the tempo in the second as they struggled to string anything meaningful in the final third.
In the 69th minute, Adolfo Gaich capitalized on a wayward pass from Juventus midfielder Arthur, before firing past Szczesny to give Benevento a shock lead.
Juventus threw men forward in search of an equalizer, but were met by a resilient Benevento defense, who held on tight to their slender lead.
Juventus player ratings
Wojciech Szczesny 5/10
The Juventus shot-stopper was largely undisturbed by the visitors as they posed no threat to his goal. He was let down by his teammates, who gifted the visitors the opening goal.
Danilo 5/10
An uncharacteristically quiet night from the Juventus full-back. He was off pace with the game as he lacked the attacking threat we have seen in recent weeks. He was easily shrugged off by Gaich, allowing the forward to find his spot and blast home the opener.
Matthijs de Ligt 6.5/10
The former Ajax man had a solid outing at the heart of the Juventus defense. He contributed to the attack and came close to scoring, but his thumping header was pushed to safety by the Benevento goalkeeper.
Leonardo Bonucci 6/10
The veteran defender struggled to keep up with the pace and movement of Benevento striker Gianluca Lapadula. The Juventus captain finished the game with one tackle and two interceptions.
Federico Bernardeschi 5/10
Playing as a left-back, he struggled to hit his stride down the left side of Juventus’ defense. He picked up an early booking which prevented him from diving into tackles and was constantly targeted by the Benevento attack after that. Bernardeschi charged forward to drill in hopeful crosses into the box, but failed to find his target more often than not.
Dejan Kulusevski 6/10
Kulusevski put in a solid shift on the right side of Juventus’ midfield. He set up Cristiano Ronaldo with a lovely pass over the top, but the goal was ruled out for offside. He was tidy in possession and contributed defensively by winning three tackles.
Arthur 4/10
The former Barcelona man gifted Benevento the winning goal after his needless pass through his own box was pounded on by Gaich.
Adrien Rabiot 5.5/10
The Frenchman kept the play ticking at the center of the park for the hosts. He was accurate with his passes, completing over 90% of them, but failed to create anything meaningful in attack. He finished with two interceptions and two tackles and won five of his seven attempted duels.
Federico Chiesa 5.5/10
Not his usual electric self against Benevento. He had a slow start to the game, constantly struggling against his marker and lacking creativity in the final third. However, he should have been awarded a penalty in the second half after he was hacked down by Foulon.
Alvaro Morata 5/10
Morata had a quiet afternoon at the Allianz Stadium. He should have opened the scoring in the first half, after beating several defenders, only to send his shot well over the crossbar. His impact faded as the game wore on.
Cristiano Ronaldo 6/10
Ronaldo was Juventus’ main attacking threat as he constantly probed the Benevento defense. He found the back of the net shortly before the half-time whistle, but the goal was ruled out as he was flagged offside. With Juventus searching for an equalizer, the 35-year-old struck an overhead kick that failed to hit the target.
Player ratings for Juventus substitutes
Weston McKennie 5/10
The American international was brought in for Adrien Rabiot with 17 minutes on the clock. He was sent on to help Juventus find a way back into the game, but ultimately failed to do so.
Rodrigo Bentancur 5.5/10
Bentancur came on for the struggling Arthur and had a decent cameo. He finished with four tackles and won all his aerial duels attempted.
