Juventus seek turnaround against NEC after painful 3-2 defeat

Juventus suffered a painful 3-2 defeat to Sassuolo in Serie A, while the club prepares for the Europa League meeting with NEC, the Nijmegen side, which takes place on Thursday at 21:00 at the Allianz Stadium. After a disappointing start they are now looking for a turning point.

False rehearsal against Sassuolo

Juventus started the match against Sassuolo with Teun Koopmeiners in the starting XI, while former Ajax player Francisco Conceição also featured at kickoff. The Turin side, under the guidance of Luciano Spalletti, enjoyed long periods of possession but could barely create chances. In the 65th minute Nemanja Matic delivered a perfect pass to Sebastiano Esposito, who calmly placed the ball in the far corner and put Sassuolo 1‑0 up. Shortly afterwards, Koopmeiners was substituted in the 71st minute for Pape Matar Sarr, while goalkeeper Arijanet Muric kept a shot from the Dutch midfielder out of the goal.

Sassuolo remained compact, but Kerim Alajbegovic provided a cross that Edon Zhegrova brought in just in time for the equaliser. Juventus tried to respond, but a shot from Darryl Bakola was easily dealt with by the defence. In the 89th minute Kieron Bowie put Sassuolo back in front with a powerful shot from the short side. Shortly afterwards Zhegrova combined with Kolo Muani and found the short side for the second equaliser of the evening.

In the very last minute Vasilije Adzic, who is loaned by Juventus to Sassuolo, got on the ball via a cross from Armand Laurienté and struck the ball into the far corner for the winning 3‑2. The twenty‑year‑old striker did not celebrate the goal, but still gave Juventus three points.

Preview of the Europa League duel against NEC

For the upcoming Europa League meeting with the Nijmegen side, Juventus must recover from this painful defeat. The match takes place on Thursday at 21:00 at the Allianz Stadium, where the home team hopes to shake off the pressure from the Serie A losses. Juventus has already confirmed that Teun Koopmeiners will start again against NEC, while the defensive options remain unclear.

The 3‑2 defeat to Sassuolo is Juventus's first of the season and highlights the vulnerability of the Turin squad. A weak start in the Europa League would seriously undermine the club's ambitions in the European championship.

The contrasts between the disappointing Serie A performance and the upcoming crucial duel show that Juventus must switch quickly to keep their European dreams alive.