Udinese 1 Juventus 1: Leonardo Bonucci rescues draw for below-par leaders after Duvan Zapata had put hosts ahead in first half
Home side were far better and took the lead with ten men on the field, while Max Allegri's men's away struggles continue
A BELOW-PAR Juventus claimed their first draw in 38 Serie A matches at Udinese.
Roma’s defeat against Napoli meant victory at the Stadio Friuli would have given the reigning champions a ten point lead at the summit.
However, they were lucky to claim the one — with their first draw since February 19, 2016 give the chasing pack some hope they could still be caught.
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Max Allegri named an ultra-attacking line-up with Gonzalo Higuain ahead of Mario Mandzukic, Paulo Dybala and Juan Cuadrado — with Miralem Pjanic and Sami Khedira just in behind.
And the Juventus boss opted for a back four.
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However, despite the wealth of talent at their disposal, the visitors were sluggish from the off and failed to create a clear cut chance in the first-half.
Their only foray forward of any note ended with a tame penalty shout after a Dani Alves cross brushed the arm of an Udinese defender.
The hosts were far better in the opening exchanges and they took the lead with just ten men on the pitch.
Seko Fofana was forced off the pitch and eventually substituted.
But while, he was receiving treatment, the impressive Duvan Zapata, nipped in to sneak the ball through Gianluigi Buffon’s legs and open the scoring.
Udinese’s Colombian striker was a menace all game and gave Leonardo Bonucci a torrid time all afternoon.
With Juventus chasing the game, Allegri opted to make a straight switch in defence and replaced Giorgio Chiellini with Medhi Benatia.
And the veteran Chielleini was far from happy at being subbed — just weeks after defensive partner, Bonucci, was fined for arguing back.
However, the switch paid dividends.
Just two minutes later, Alves went to ground following minimal contact.
And, from the resulting free-kick, Dybala curled in a delicious ball which was powered into the back of the net via the head of Bonucci.
The Udinese bench was far from unhappy at the awarding of the free-kick and complained to the referee — with manager, Luigi Del Neri, sent to the stands.
Moments later, the home side came close when they hit the post with a free-kick of their own.
In the end, Juve managed to rescue a point, but their relatively poor away continues.
This is the fifth time this season they have failed to claim three points on their travels, while winning every single home match.