Juventus vs. Udinese: Winners and Losers from Serie A Clash

After last week’s 1-0 win over Chievo—reviewed here—Juventus have been forced to wait for their next Serie A match. While the international break saw many of the club’s stars fly off to represent their respective countries, it also denied Massimiliano Allegri the chance to immediately build upon that positive start.

If an opening day victory was vital for the new coach, it was perhaps even more imperative that he continued that against Udinese on Saturday. The Friulian side were the first to visit Turin this season, and taking three points from his debut home game was crucial to Allegri winning over the Bianconeri supporters.

Antonio Conte boasted an incredible record at Juventus Stadium, including victories in all 19 league fixtures there in 2014-15. Thanks to a 2–0 win here, his successor has certainly begun on the right path as he attempts to fill the void left by the former captain.

Over the following pages is a look at the winners and losers from this encounter. Please let us know in the comment section if you agree with the choices.

Winner: Carlos Tevez (Juventus)

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This week, Carlos Tevez had to deny reports he was injured, taking to Twitter (h/t Football Italia) to insist he was fine and “preparing for Saturday’s game.” Putting the idle chatter behind him quickly, the Argentinian opened the scoring against Udinese after just eight minutes.

Side-footing home a comfortable finish from around 12 yards, the striker netted his 20th goal for the Bianconeri in just 36 Serie A appearances. He played well throughout the match, adding an assist as he teed up Claudio Marchisio for Juve's important second goal.

Winner: Antonio Di Natale (Udinese)

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Perhaps the greatest Serie A striker of the past few years, Antonio Di Natale continued his fine form against the reigning champions. The 36-year-old netted twice in Udinese’s opening match against Empoli, and impressed here despite failing to add to that tally.

A constant threat to the Juventus backline, the Zebrette captain provided a series of chances for his team-mates, and will be frustrated at their failure to capitalise upon them.

Even without getting his name on the score sheet, Di Natale proved with his all-round play that he remains a prominent force.

Winner: Claudio Marchisio (Juventus)

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Claudio Marchisio has arguably became the odd-man-out at Juventus, with the emergence of Paul Pogba seeing the 21-year-old joining Arturo Vidal and Andrea Pirlo as the first-choice midfield for the Bianconeri.

However, with the latter pair of the trio absent through injury on Saturday, he would once again step in just when the Old Lady needed him most. With Udinese threatening to establish a foothold in the second half, Marchisio netted a crucial second goal for the home side.

Winner: Martin Caceres (Juventus)

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With Andrea Barzagli and Giorgio Chiellini missing once again, Martin Caceres continued on the right of the Juventus back three. He has been in excellent form throughout 2014, and showed that with yet another impressive display.

According to stats site WhoScored.com, the Uruguayan made three interceptions, four clearances and completed 92 percent of his pass attempts.

Loser: Sebastian Giovinco (Juventus)

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After Juventus sold Mirko Vucinic and Fabio Quagliarella this past summer, it seemed Sebastian Giovinco would rise up the pecking order in Turin. However, the impressive early form of Kingsley Coman and the arrival of Alvaro Morata appears to have seen him remain on the outside looking in.

Those two new signings took to the field tonight, replacing Tevez and Fernando Llorente respectively, whilst Giovinco remained an unused substitute for the second game in a row. His lack of playing time has led to speculation about his future, with TuttoSport (h/t Football Italia) linking him to Arsenal this weekend.