Juventus 3-1 Udinese: 5 Talking points from the game | Serie A 2019-20

The giants of Turin invited Udinese to a clash that saw the visitors receive a beating at the Allianz Stadium. The Friulani are currently on a poor run of five games without a win, and they sit only one slot above relegation zone.

Juventus, on the other hand, have picked up the top spot on the Serie A table, as they continue a tug of war for first place with Inter Milan.

With the game starting with earnest attacks from the Bianconeri, it didn't take long to see the opening goal of the game. Just nine minutes in, a tackle from Troost-Ekong on Paulo Dybala pushed a loose ball right into Cristiano Ronaldo's path, and the star striker powered a one-time shot past Musso and into the bottom right corner of the goal.

Udinese had no plans to attack, so they sat deep defending, and Juventus piled on the pressure. 20 minutes in, Dybala scored an excellent chip over Musso and into the net, but he was accused by the referee of handling the ball moments before his goal.

However, minutes before half-time, a classic shot by Ronaldo put the Bianconeri's in cruise control. A perfect pass from Gonzalo Higuain was all the Portuguese star needed as he received the ball, went past his marker and sent his shot past an outstretched Musso and into the net.

With their win fairly settled, Juventus slowed down the pace somewhat, but Udinese still remained unable to do much outside their own half. Right on the stroke of half-time, a poorly-cleared corner saw Merih Demiral head the ball back into the final third where Leonardo Bonucci was waiting to head it above the keeper's reach and right under the bar.

The second half started a bit differently for Udinese. The Friulani put in conceited efforts to drive forward more consistently and take more action in the final third. Manager Luca Gotti clearly tried to get something out of the game as he made two quick changes before the 70th minute. Maurizio Sarri responded by substituting Bonucci for former Ajax star Matthijs de Ligt, Dybala for Federico Bernardeschi, and Higuain for Douglas Costa. Late in the game, Gotti brought in another striker - Ilija Nestorovski - to take over from midfielder Jens Larsen.

Udinese had clearly worked much harder in the second half, and deep into injury time, they were able to pick up a consolation goal, thanks to a deflection off Demiral. The Friulani found their way from the back into the final third, and during play, the ball deflected off Demiral and landed right in front of a waiting Pussetto who hit a one-time shot past Buffon to find the goal.

Juventus will be glad to have dominated most of the game, but they will go home feeling like they should have kept a clean sheet. Udinese, on the other hand. will rue their lackadasical start to the game which quickly saw them concede three goals.

Without further ado, let's take a look at five talking points from the game.

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#5 Cristiano Ronaldo was the star of the game

Ronaldo hits the post during the game.

If anyone deserved a hat-trick today, it was certainly the star Portuguese forward. He was unstoppable throughout the game, and while he eventually ended up scoring a brace, the long range shot that would have been his third goal ended up hitting the post and staying out of the goal. He took seven shots at goal, with two hitting the target.

While Ronaldo was efficient and demanding in front of goal, he selflessly passed the ball when needed, and gave opportunites to his teammates. Maintaining a 90% passing accuracy, he was mostly on target in spreading the game.

The 34-year-old forward has shown no signs of slowing down as he scored his eighth and ninth goals in the Serie A during the game.

#4 It took Udinese the entire first half to wake up from their slumber

Udinese try to stop Ronaldo

From the get-go, it started to look like a pre-planned Juventus party. The hosts were agile, swift, and ready to drive forward with the ball at every opportune moment. The same could not be said for the visitors who seemed unable to comprehend what was happening.

It wasn't too surprising when, nine minutes in, one of Juventus' driving attacks led to a goal. Sadly for Udinese, that would only be the start of their worries. They remained deep, unwilling to move forward, and it took them 18 minutes to get hold of the ball. It didn't last long, however, and sooner rather than later, Juventini attacks were flowing again, and another goal followed.

Just before half-time, poor clearance resulted in a third goal for Juventus, and Udinese was sinking.

The half-time break, and perhaps a rabid team talk from manager Luca Gotti, brought a very improved Udinese side to the fore. While Juventus continued to find opportunities in a bid to keep changing the numbers on the scoreboard, the Friulani also found their way into the final third and began to actively trouble the Juventus defence.

It is to their credit that they found a consolation goal and brought the difference down to two.

#3 The Bianconeri defence stood firm throughout the game

The defence was one of the reasons why Juventus got all three points

While they didn't collect much hassle in the first half, with Buffon barely making a difficult save, Juventus' defence remained top-notch and composed throughout the game. When Udinese started to show spirit and gain confidence in the second half, Juventus hauled a massive defensive wall to hold them back.

They were great under pressure and managed to individually maintain a high passing accuracy of over 90%. Aside from their passing qualities, they actively made the game difficult for the Udinese attack with their defending.

Merih Demiral notably made seven clearances during the course of the game, and while he may have caused the deflection that gave Udinese a goal, his efforts throughout could not be hampered by one mistake.

Interestingly, both centre-backs contributed to the third goal with Demiral giving the assist and Bonucci putting the ball in the goal. They played a solid game that was only slightly marred by the clean sheet they failed to pick up.

#2 Udinese's tactical substitution paid off well

Pussetto took two shots at goal, scoring once, and aided his team's presence in the final third with two key passes that troubled the Juventini defence

When Gotti decided to bring Stefano Okaka off for Ignacio Pussetto, it was certainly clear as to why. Udinese's No. 7 was having a very hard time sourcing the ball and creating chances for himself, even after the half-time break when the team generally sat up.

He showed his poor touch constantly, kept getting dispossessed, and didn't have an entire shot at goal throughout the game. He also had the fewest passes and the fewest touches on the ball in the Udinese starting XI.

The player who was substituted in for him - Ignacio Pussetto - had a much better game in much less time. Pussetto took two shots at goal, scoring once, and aided his team's presence in the final third with two key passes that troubled the Juventini defence.

The 23-year-old capped off his performance with a good consolation goal for his team and has perhaps proven to Gotti that he is ready for his fourth start for the Italian outfit.

#1 The attacking trio were efficient and unstoppable for Juventus

Ronaldo, Dybala and Higuain are gelling well for Juventus

Juventus will be glad to get back to winning ways, but what has excited the Bianconeri fanbase the most is how well Paulo Dybala, Gonzalo Higuain, and Cristiano Ronaldo are beginning to gel on the field.

Throughout the game, they seemed to understand each other totally as they sourced out chances together and overan the Udinese defence as a single unit. Expectedly, they picked up eight key passes, seventeen shots, and five dribbles in total - arguably more than the Udinese attack had the chance to muster.

With Dybala sitting behind both strikers, they created chance after chance, and were certainly unlucky to have hit the bar twice. Dybala and Higuain deserved goals after a worthy display, and all that was missing for Ronaldo was a third goal to seal yet another hattrick in his career.

On a better day, the scoreline would have seen Juventus score more than five goals against similar opposition. But alas, it was not to be.