A night as mistress of the championship. Juventus does its duty by beating Chievo with a final 2-0 and takes the top of the standings, albeit waiting for Napoli to respond against Bologna (15pm). If Sarri wins everything will go back to the way it was before, but in the meantime it is Allegri who takes the lead and this could affect the psychological state of the Azzurri, who are forced to take the 3 points so as not to find themselves chasing the Lady. Verona is therefore worth the momentary overtaking, at the end of an opaque but substantially dominated match without running any kind of risk. Bastien and Cacciatore lent a hand, leaving Chievo in 9 due to two respective follies. The Frenchman, just two minutes after taking the first yellow card, saw fit to yank Asamoah under the eyes of Maresca, the full-back instead even dusted off the gesture of the handcuffs, so much so that a request for copyright is now expected directly by José Mourinho.
Seriously, the episodes have completely cut off the legs of a Chievo that is already too inferior to oppose Juve, let alone with a double numerical inferiority. Yet the bianconeri had to wait until the 67th minute to unlock the match: thanks to Khedira, who was very good at beating Sorrentino with a fireball from the center of the area. The match was decided there but it was Higuain who put the final seal on it, thus breaking a hunger that had lasted since 1 December: this header (88') is worth much less than that goal from San Paolo, at psychological, however, could prove to be even more important. “We're all happy for him but what mattered most was to win – said Allegri. – This is a very important success above all because it's away, even if we need to improve in terms of intensity. Chievo defended well and made life difficult for us, then in eleven against nine it was just a question of being patient."
Today, however, it will be up to Napoli to respond: 3 points with Bologna would put the standings back in order. On paper, the Azzurri are superior, there's no doubt about that, if anything, the problem could concern the psychological aspect. There is pressure to be overtaken by Juve, now it's a question of understanding whether Sarri's team will be able to handle it when they grow up or not. "We'll go to the San Paolo to score points, not to play the role of extras" growled Donadoni, clarifying that Napoli's real problem won't be the pressure but his Bologna. If we add to all this that there will be a certain Verdi on the field, the protagonist of a transfer refusal that has made more noise than many signings, the picture is truly complete. Sarri wants to win at all costs and will rely on his classic 4-3-3 with Reina in goal, Hysaj, Chiriches (Albiol, stopped by a muscle problem, was not even called up), Koulibaly and Mario Rui in defense, Allan , Jorginho and Hamsik in midfield, Callejon, Mertens and Insigne in attack. The same game system also for Donadoni, who will attempt the feat with Mirante between the posts, Mbaye, De Maio, Helander and Masina in the back department, Poli, Pulgar and Dzemaili in the midfield, Verdi, Destro and Palacio in the offensive trident.
