Federico Chiesa was the undoubted star of the show on Wednesday night as his brace helped Juventus to a 3-1 victory over AC Milan, ending the Rossoneri’s run of 27 Serie A matches without defeat.
The Rossoneri had dreams of extending their lead atop the standings to four points after city rivals Inter fell to Sampdoria earlier in the day, however a reshuffled Bianconeri side proved too much for a Rossoneri outfit forced to start Davide Calabria in midfield due to numerous absentees as well.
Juve opened the scoring thanks to a well-taken Chiesa finish in the 18th minute, however Milan equalized just before half-time as Calabria fired home from the edge of the box despite protests from the away side.
While both sides showed hunger after the restart, it was the Bianconeri that made the most of their chances thanks to another great Chiesa finish before substitute Weston McKennie rounded out the scoring with a strike from close distance.
Samu Castillejo got things started early with a drive that stung the gloves of Wojciech Szczesny, while Chiesa responded with a volley that thumped the post with Gianluigi Donnarumma beaten.
The Italian made amends minutes later as he collected Paulo Dybala’s back-heel flick after a quick one-two, and he fired his angled drive into the far bottom corner to give the visitors the early advantage.
Chiesa continued his strong first performance by testing the in-form Theo Hernandez, sending in a cross that just missed Cristiano Ronaldo and then forcing Donnarumma into a great save after firing a strike from the edge of the box.
Rafael Leao wasted a great chance on the counter by firing over the bar, while Aaron Ramsey’s attempt to beat Hakan Calhanoglu to the ball almost resulted in an own goal, however an alert Szczesny kept the ball out.
He could do nothing to stop the equalizer just before half-time. Calhanoglu looked to have fouled Adrien Rabiot in the middle of the park, but no foul was given as Leao surged forward on the counter. The forward picked out Calabria at the edge of the area, and the Italian made no mistake in picking out the top corner. VAR did not intervene despite protests from the Bianconeri.
Diego Dalot kicked off the restart with daisy-cutter that forced Szczesny into an excellent diving stop as both teams started the second half with intensity, fighting for each and every ball.
Juventus restored their advantage in the 62nd minute with Chiesa once again getting the better of Theo Hernandez. The Italian gathered the ball on the edge of the box, cut inside from the right and past his marker before firing home into the far corner with his left-foot.
Chiesa would be forced off with cramps immediately after the goal, while Rodrigo Bentancur was lucky to remain on the pitch after a late challenge on Calhanoglu in the middle of the park went unpunished despite already being on a yellow.
After Ronaldo picked out McKennie with a great dinking pass over the defence that the American turned into a great strike on goal, Juventus added a third minutes later. Dejan Kulusevksi burst down the right and picked out McKennie, who got to the ball before Simone Kjaer to slot home from close range, ending Milan’s chances of a comeback along with their unbeaten record.
