Juventus fight back to beat struggling Benevento

Posted Monday, November 06, 2017 by PA

Juventus survived a scare as they came from behind to beat Serie A's bottom club Benevento 2-1 at home.

The visitors, who are rooted to the foot of the table after losing all of their league games this season, shocked the Allianz Stadium crowd as they broke the deadlock in the first half when Amato Ciciretti's free-kick found the bottom corner.

But a dominant Juve remained calm and netted twice in the second period to secure all three points, with Gonzalo Higuain and Juan Cuadrado getting on the scoresheet.

The victory takes Juventus to within a point of the summit after leaders Napoli and Inter Milan dropped points on Sunday.

Juve started brightly and were unlucky not to take the lead in the early stages, with Douglas Costa hitting the woodwork twice in three first-half minutes.

The Brazilian first had his 13th-minute cross turned onto the post by visiting goalkeeper Alberto Brignoli before clattering the bar shortly after.

But it was basement club Benevento who drew first blood in the 19th minute when Ciciretti sent his curling free-kick into the corner of Wojciech Szczesny's net.

The hosts threw everything at Benevento as they searched for a leveller but the champions could not find a way past the impressive Brignoli in the first half, with Paulo Dybala and Cuadrado among those to be denied before the break.

Juve flew out of the traps in the second half and levelled things up 12 minutes after the interval when Higuain fired in his fifth goal in four games in all competitions after Blaise Matuidi had headed Mattia De Sciglio's cross into his path.

And after another period of intense pressure, Juve scored again eight minutes later when Cuadrado nodded in after getting on the end of Alex Sandro's deep cross.

The home side pushed for a third in the closing exchanges but Brignoli was again on hand to keep out substitute Rodrigo Bentancur in added time.

Juve climb above Inter into second in the table after they were held to a 1-1 draw by Torino in Sunday's early kick-off.