Juventus grind past Parma to keep perfect start and clean-sheet run alive

It was not always smooth, and for long stretches Parma made life awkward, but Juve eventually found the quality needed to break the game open.

Match highlight

Douglas Luiz was heavily involved in the early stages, dragging 2 efforts off target and then seeing a free-kick strike the wall as Juventus tried to stamp their authority on the contest quickly.

Carlos Cuesta's side looked lively on the counter and nearly punished Juve when Christian Ordonez met a chance close to goal and sent his volley just wide of the post.

Francisco Conceicao went close when his left-footed effort struck the woodwork, but after the fast opening spell Parma settled into the game and seemed fairly comfortable soaking up pressure. In the end, Juventus managed only 1 shot on target in the entire 1st half.

The game tilted more heavily after the break. Parma debutant Jhon Lucumi should probably have done better when Jeremie Boga picked him out, only for the defender to blast over. At the other end, Jonathan David and Randal Kolo Muani were both wasteful as Juventus kept pushing without finding the finish.

Nico Gonzalez came closest first. The Argentine hit a sharp left-footed volley on target, but Edoardo Corvi reacted brilliantly to save. That was only a warning.

Soon after, Gonzalez tried again and this time his rocket came back off the post, bounced off Corvi and ended up in the net.

Parma nearly found an immediate response when David Romero's header was kept out by an excellent Guglielmo Vicario save, and for a moment there was still a path back for the visitors.

Kolo Muani then had 2 quick chances to kill it. First he was denied one-on-one by Corvi, then he headed over from a corner when he should have done better.

Juventus were also a little fortunate not to be punished at the other end.

There was a strong case for Parma to get a penalty after Kerim Alajbegovic clumsily brought down Mandela Keita inside the box, but nothing was given and the hosts escaped a potentially huge moment.

Only 2 minutes after coming on for the injured Andrea Cambiaso, Teun Koopmeiners whipped a precise left-footed finish into the bottom corner to make it 2-0 and finally take the tension out of the afternoon.

It was not Juventus at their most convincing. But for Luciano Spalletti, 2 wins and 2 clean sheets is still exactly the kind of start that can build belief after last season's disappointing 6th-place finish.

Parma, meanwhile, showed enough to suggest they can compete, even if starting a Serie A campaign with 2 straight defeats for the first time since 2020-21 is not the kind of history they wanted.