Thiago Motta's Juventus give newly-promoted Como rude awakening with emphatic victory
Replacing the great Massimiliano Allegri, Motta’s job was to re-establish the Old Lady as contenders for the Scudetto while transforming their style of play. A turgid opening to this contest suggested there was still plenty of acclimatisation to be done from his players, but once Juve got on top in the first period they never looked like relinquishing control.
The opener arrived at the half’s midway point, as Samuel Mbangula – who was making his professional debut – cut inside from the left before firing into the bottom corner past a helpless Pepe Reina.
Cesc Fabregas’ men were hanging on as the interval approached, and after Dusan Vlahovic hit the post, it looked as though they’d make it through to HT with just a one-goal deficit.
Timothy Weah had other ideas though, as he thundered in the hosts’ second off the underside of the bar, after Vlahović had cleverly let Kenan Yıldız’s low cross run through his legs.
Juventus showed no signs of slowing down after the restart, with Vlahovic seeing a goal ruled out for offside before hitting the post again.
Those flashpoints came within the first 10 minutes of the second half, but with the game as good as won and greater tests lying ahead, Motta’s men somewhat eased off their visitors.
A raft of Como substitutions disrupted the flow of the contest, though the visitors never looked a threat to the Juve goal, as they sought desperately to muster a shot of any description.
Gabriel Strefezza was the man to finally take aim at debuting Juventus stopper Michele Di Gregorio’s goal, but his effort flashed wide as the Serie A new boys surrendered to a comprehensive defeat on their return to the top-flight after more than two decades away.
It was the perfect start for Juve by contrast, and they added a third in stoppage time through Andrea Cambiaso’s stunning curler into the far corner from the edge of the area, as they extended their unbeaten record against newly-promoted opposition to seven matches.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Kenan Yıldız (Juventus)
