Juventus 2-0 Napoli: red card and bench changes decide the game after 70 goalless minutes
Alajbegovic scored on 70 minutes and Marianucci was sent off on 75. Juventus's substitutes then set up the second goal, while Napoli's changes made no difference.
The match broke in five minutes. Alajbegovic put Juventus ahead on 70 minutes, and on 75 Marianucci received a second yellow card, leaving Napoli with ten men.
Until then it was an open game, goalless, with eleven players a side. After that Napoli had to come back a man down. That matters. Marianucci had been booked since the 38th minute and played on the edge for more than half an hour, which left the team exposed at the wrong moment.
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The substitutions were the second deciding factor. Both sides made five, but Juventus's produced straight away. Zhegrova came on at 59 and on 70 he set up Alajbegovic. Boga and Kelly came on at 72. Cambiaso came on at 82 and on 87 he gave Boga the pass for the 2-0. From the Juventus bench came an assist, a goal and another assist.
Napoli's changes brought nothing comparable: Rrahmani and Gilmour at half-time, Vergara on 61, Beukema and Giovane on 79. A bench that changes a game matters, and this time it was the opposition's that did it.
A defence that held, then gave way
The defence is the point on which the fanbase has been demanding answers for weeks. Juventus had 18 shots and won 13 corners to Napoli's 4, keeping Napoli in their own half with constant pressure. Four shots on target brought two goals, and Napoli needed two saves from Meret to stay level that long.
A defence that holds until the 70th minute and then gives way twice in 17 minutes is not solid. It simply stayed up for as long as it could.
What comes next
Allegri was suspended, but responsibility still lies with those who prepared the match and chose the substitutions. A Napoli side in eighth place cannot write off a night like this as an accident.
Napoli play Porto in the Champions League on Wednesday 4 November at 21:00 CET (20:00 UK, 15:00 ET). It is a separate competition, and the team arrive having to show they can hold a balanced game to the end.
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