Juventus took on Lazio tonight looking to record a second successive win to start their Serie A campaign in style.
The Old Lady wasted no time in stamping their authority on the match thanks to Arturo Vidal, who found the net twice inside the first 30 minutes.
Lazio were able to quickly reduce the deficit through Miroslav Klose, but Juve proved too strong as Mirko Vucinic found the net early in the second half for the home side's third.
Hernanes was then sent off for the visitors after deliberately handling, with Carlos Tevez getting his third goal in black and white late on to add shine to the scoreline.
Look back at a resounding victory for Antonio Conte's men with Sports Mole's minute-by-minute commentary below.
Evening Calcio fans. A packed weekend of Serie A action gets going tonight at the Juventus Arena, and Sports Mole will bring you every kick as the defending champions welcome Lazio to Turin.
Juve got their campaign underway with maximum points last weekend, with a typically efficient performance away from home against Sampdoria. Summer signing Carlos Tevez was the difference maker, scoring the only goal in Geona as Juve secured a victory by the narrowest of margins.
The defending champions will take some stopping this season as they aim for a third successive Scudetto, particularly considering the additions of Tevez and Fernando Llorente. Napoli look best placed to mount a challenge from the chasing pack, with Rafael Benitez's side making it back-to-back wins earlier today in a 4-2 victory at Chievo.
Lazio would like to consider themselves part of that chasing pack, after keeping pace at the top until Christmas last season before falling away badly. Vladimir Petkovic's side are usually very difficult to break down and will need those resilient qualities against the Old Lady this evening.
The Aquile are looking to exercise some early-season demons tonight, after being embarrassed by Juve a fortnight ago. The Old Lady were ruthless against Lazio in the Supercoppa, thrashing the hosts 4-0 in their own back yard to make a statement of intent ahead of the new campaign.
Petkovic's side responded positively last week, easing to a 2-1 win at home to Udinese in their Serie A opener. Hernanes and Miroslav Klose were the catalysts behind that success, but will probably need even stronger performances to take any points back to Rome tonight.
BREAKING TEAM NEWS! The starting XI's from Turin have just reached us and unsurprisingly Juve are unchanged, with Tevez leading the line alongside Mirko Vucinic. A full look at both lineups will follow in just a few moments.
JUVENTUS XI: Buffon, Barzagli, Bonucci, Chiellini, Lichtsteiner, Vidal, Pirlo, Pogba, Asamoah, Tevez, Vucinic
LAZIO XI: Marchetti, Cavanda, Novaretti, Cana, Radu, Gonzalez, Biglia, Hernanes, Lulic, Candreva, Klose
A fairly settled Juve side will continue in a 3-5-2 formation, with Paul Pogba continuing to deputise for the injured Claudio Marchisio in central midfield. Kwadwo Asamoah will provide pace on the flank, with Tevez and Vucinic continuing to build an understanding today in the final third.
Lazio are currently in the grip of a sustained injury crisis, with the likes of Abdoulay Konko unavailable alongside suspended skipper Stefano Mauri. Diego Novaretti will continue to deputise in central defence, while summer signing Lucas Biglia keeps his place in midfield.
Petkovic can call on one huge positive ahead of tonight's daunting trip north, his side's performance against Juve in the Coppa Italia semi-final last season. Lazio knocked the Old Lady out over two legs after earning a 1-1 draw in Turin, denying Conte any chance of a domestic double.
PREDICTION! The Juve Arena is raucous as they await the two teams, building quite an atmosphere ahead of what promises to be quite a clash between Serie A heavyweights. I fully expect Lazio to frustrate for long spells tonight, but Juve are used to probing patiently at home and should have enough to earn a 2-1 to maintain their 100% start to the campaign.
Conte and Petkovic exchange pleasantries and with that we are just about ready to get this clash underway. Both sides have opted for a pre-match huddle and it will be Juve to get us underway, shooting from right to left. Lazio are in a changed all-yellow strip, hoping to spring a surprise on the road.
Lazio win back possession early on and look for Lulic with a long diagonal pass, which falls well wide of its intended target and out play. Juve then build from the back through Pirlo, with Tevez flagged offside as he roamed inside the final third after being rolled inside by Vucinic.
Hernanes picks up the pieces to strike at goal after Candreva had driven down the touchline to beat Lichtsteiner. His fierce half-volley forced Buffon to tip wide at his near post, winning a corner kick to serve as an early warning sign that Lazio will pose a threat on the counter tonight.
An end-to-end start continues as Vucinic peels off his marker to collect a long pass from Pirlo over the top. The forward looks to control and shoot but is just crowded out by Cana, who got back to get a vital block on a shot which spilled towards Marchetti's grateful gloves.
Lichtsteiner wins Juve a free-kick just outside the penalty after being brought down by a clumsy challenge from Hernanes. Pirlo elects to cross towards the back post rather than shoot, but Cana reads his delivery and heads clear under pressure from Pogba.
Tevez throws himself down inside the penalty area but the referee waves away his hopeful protests for a spot kick. Juve are starting to dominate possession in the final third, with Lazio struggling to clear their lines as Vidal curls high over the crossbar from 20 yards.
Lichtsteiner is finding an alarming amount of room out wide on the overlap as Juve pen their opponents in. Lazio eventually give their defence a breather as Candreva whips in a cross on the counter, forcing Chiellini to head behind for a corner kick with Klose lurking.
GOAL! Juve 1-0 Lazio (Vidal)
Juve have just picked Lazio apart with the ruthless streak they have become famous for to take an early lead. Vidal will get the plaudits for a neat finish from close range but Pogba was the architect, clipping a wonderful pass behind a Lazio defence desperately appealing for offside. The flag never came and the Chilean cooly slotted past Marchetti into the corner. Advantage Juve!
The assault on Lazio's box shows no sign of letting up as Asamoah gets involved, crossing behind to let Lazio off with a goal kick. The visitors are just unable to string three passes together in central midfield at the moment, as Lichtsteiner's burst forward nearly sees him meet a reverse pass from Tevez in the final third.
Candreva tries his luck from range with a speculative drive, winning his side a corner kick as Buffon spilled behind. From the following corner Lazio create their first strong opening of the match as Cana beats Barzagli at the near post, but his flicked header drifts beyond the back post and behind for goal kick.
Tevez shows quick feet to break clear down the right for Juve, but drifts a cross beyond Vucinic and over the far post. Lazio then smash forward from the goal kick, resulting in a stoppage so Candreva can receive treatment after going down under a strong challenge with Bonucci clutching his knee.
GOAL! Juve 2-0 Lazio (Vidal)
Vidal haunts Lazio again to bag an early brace, that's his fourth goal against Petkovic's men in the last 12 months. The visitors made it all too easy, allowing Vidal to drift off Radu and collect Bonucci's long ball towards the back post. A simple finish into the far corner and Juve are two goals to the good.
GOAL! Juve 2-1 Lazio (Klose)
Just at Juve looked to be cruising Miroslav Klose has reacted quickest to hand Lazio an instant lifeline. The German striker reacted quickest as Buffon strangely spilled a Hernanes shot from range back into the box. Klose has made a career out of natural finishing inside the box and pounced like a true predator, slotting into the corner to reduce the deficit. Game on!
Lazio have taken confidence from that goal and strike from range again through Radu, who swerves a strike towards the bottom corner that needs turning away from a corner. Juve clear their lines from the cross but only out to Hernanes, who works Buffon again as the Azzurri keeper catches a curling strike that lacked power.
YELLOW CARD! Hernanes gets the game's first yellow card after rather petulantly tripping Asamoah. The midfielder has just failed to combine with Candreva and clipped the wing-back, earning a caution as a result.
YELLOW CARD! Bonucci quickly follows Hernanes into the book, despite appearing to cleanly claim the ball in a challenge on the Brazilian playmaker. The defender's angry protest may well have contributed to that caution, but nonetheless it seemed a little harsh.
Hernanes is really starting to enjoy himself in possession, showing confidence to breeze past Pogba with a change of pace before winning a free kick around 40 yards from goal.
Candreva decides to shoot from all of 40 yards from the free kick, with his low strike skidding off the surface before flying well past the near post. Lazio are quickly back on the front foot and once again want to shoot from distance through Hernanes, who forces Buffon to punch his central strike away from danger.
Lulic is the latest to break out wide with pace and purpose, before cutting inside to curl a teasing cross towards the far post. Chiellini is just able to get a toe on an interception but there will be no time for a corner kick to be taken, with the referee blowing for half-time.
HALF TIME Juve 2-1 Lazio
Well that was a peculiar but thoroughly entertaining first half full of contrasts. After 28 minutes Juve looked to cruising thanks to a brace from Vidal, but Klose quickly fired back and before the break Lazio were confident in possession an pushing for an equaliser.
Juve have definitely taken their foot off the pedal after a superb start. Pogba, Pirlo and Vidal controlled midfield with assurance early on, with Lichtsteiner also bursting free with regularity on the far side.
Conte's men looked able to slip into cruise control but were undone by a rare error from Buffon, who failed to effectively palm clear a strike from Hernanes just a minute after Vidal had put the Old Lady two goals clear. Klose was on hand to pick up the pieces and score from close range, but you can see that the visitors are clearly targeting powerful strikes from distance to test Buffon's reflexes.
Lazio have looked at their most dangerous when Candreva has exploited the space left out wide by Lichtsteiner. You sense that their chances of responding hinge on finding Hernanes space to create in the final third, but the Brazilian did seem to be warming to the task just before the interval.
BENCH WATCH! If Conte was unhappy with that end to the first period he has no shortage of options at his disposal on the bench. Fernando Llorente and Sebastian Giovinco could add power and pace respectively in the final third, while Isla and Padoin are more defensive options. No such luck for Petkovic, who will probably unleash Ederson or Floccari if his side are still chasing the game late on.
The second half gets underway as Lazio bring the ball forward through Cavanda, who swaps passes with both Candreva and Gonzales before switching play.
Candreva ends a spell of possession for the visitors by smashing well wide from 30 yards, with Lazio continuing to try their luck from range with varying degrees of success.
GOAL! Juve 3-1 Lazio (Vucinic)
All Lazio's hard work is undone once again by a long ball over the top from Bonucci. His diagonal found Vucinic's clever run towards the far post, with the striker collecting unmarked before stabbing home from close range with a simple finish. All to easy for Juve, who restore their two-goal advantage.
Lazio look frustrated as Gonzalez and Biglia launch successive strikes from range, but you have to make Juve overwhelming favourites to earn three points now with that two-goal cushion restored.
A clever reverse pass from Vidal just finds Tevez in an offside position as he lines up a strike at goal. The Argentine has looked bright but struggled to find space so far this evening, dropping deep to allow Vucinic to stay furthest forward.
Radu just about manages to keep a stray pass from Hernanes in play, but that effort allows Vidal to cover and quickly rob Lulic of possession near the corner flag. Lazio just look to have run out of ideas slightly in the final third, particularly with only Klose to find as the lone front man.
RED CARD! Hernanes has just got his marching orders after stupidly handling as he attempted to control a cross inside the penalty area. The Brazilian has just effectively ended any chance of Lazio getting back in this match, foolishness of the highest order. The referee has no choice but to leave Lazio a man light with more than 25 minutes left to play.
SUBSTITUTION: That dismissal has forced Petkovic to make his first change of the night, swapping Biglia for Christian Ledesma. Lazio will now leave Klose up top and two banks of four behind, in a bid to contain the hosts and hope for Candreva and Lulic to break clear if possible on either flank.
Juve are yet to show any real desire to press home their numerical advantage, with Cavanda just able to stop Tevez in full flow after a sublime first touch from the striker.
Candrvea has shown he loves a strike from range this evening and continues that trend by striking an effort from 30 yards that looks to be creeping inside the far corner. Buffon has just enough time to adjust and punch clear but looks annoyed that the midfielder was not closed down.
OFF THE BAR! A wonderful exchange between Vidal and Tevez on the edge of the area sees Juve go within inches of a fourth goal, as Tevez curls a strike back off the crossbar. Meanwhile Lazio have made a positive if slightly surprising change, with full-back Cavanda swapped for striker Sergio Floccari.
Lichtsteiner shows some stamina at this late stage to charge down the wing and meet a long pass. Cana eventually comes across to stop his charging run with a strong sliding tackle, helping Juve establish possession with a throw in near the corner flag.
SUBSTITUTION: Conte decides Lichsteiner deserves a rest after an all-action performance, introducing Mauricio Isla in the closing stages. The Chilean largely failed to make an impression on the first team last season, but gets a late chance to impress this evening.
GOAL! Juve 4-1 Lazio (Tevez)
Make that three goals in three games for Juve, and his goal tonight was quite sublime. The Argentine twisted Cana inside and out to create space on the edge of the area, before deceiving Marchetti to find the bottom corner with a clever curling drive. Quite maginificent for Tevez, who is an instant hit with the fans in Turin!
SUBSTITUTION: Following Tevez's drive both managers decide to ring the changes. Lazio swap tireless worker Klose for Ederson with the game over as a contest. Juve meanwhile hand a full debut to Angelo Ogbonna in defence, with Fabio Quagliarella also on for Vucinic in the final few minutes.
Floccari is quite unlucky not to meet a long diagonal pass into the penalty area, with Ogbonna managing to hook clear despite losing his footing as the ball swung towards the six-yard box. Vidal then sprints back to make a covering challenge, as Ederson tests Buffon with yet another drive from distance for the visitors.
Vidal comes within an inch of claiming his hat-trick as we head into stoppage time, with his low strike from 20 yards just evading the corner and a late dive from Marchetti. We will have at least two additional minutes.
Tevez wins a late corner kick for the hosts, but was unlucky not to receive a better pass from Quagliarella as he was forced out wide. Pirlo elects to take the corner short and that should just about do it here at the Juve Arena.
FULL TIME Juventus 4-1 Lazio
Once again a perfect example of why Juve have become the dominant force in Serie A, surviving a shaky five-minute spell to put four past a strong Lazio side. The Old Lady were quite exceptional at times and fully deserve a raucous applause from the home crowd.
Lazio put up a brave fight towards the end of the first half, but in the end were well beaten. Hernanes effectively ended the match as a contest with his stupid red card midway through the second half, with Tevez getting in on the act to maintain his dream start to life in Turin.
That just about brings to an end our coverage from the Italian top flight tonight. Thanks for joining Sports Mole for commentary of Juve in full flow, and be sure to join us tomorrow night when the rest of Serie A bid to prove their worth. Good evening!
Written by
Liam Power
Liam Power
