ROME: Critics had been demanding that Juventus use its younger players more during a horrendous start to Serie A.
They had to be appeased after Moise Kean, Federico Chiesa and Matthijs De Ligt each scored in a 3-2 win at Spezia for the Bianconeri’s first Italian league win of the season on Wednesday.
De Ligt scored the winner in the 72nd minute to complete a comeback after Juventus fell behind four minutes after the break.
Playing in place of Juventus captain Giorgio Chiellini, the 22-year-old De Ligt coolly redirected in a loose ball that was being knocked around following a corner.
The 23-year-old Chiesa had equalized six minutes earlier with a typical goal for the Italy winger: he darted straight to the goal by dribbling through the legs of a defender then just barely got his shot off as he was sliding toward the ball.
The 21-year-old Kean — like coach Massimiliano Allegri in his second stint at Juventus — had given the visitors an early lead with a long shot after Adrien Rabiot knocked down a ball over the top from Leonardo Bonucci.
Spezia had struck back with goals both sides of halftime, the first coming with a solo effort from Emmanuel Gyasi, who dribbled by Danilo on the left flank and looped a long shot into the far corner.
Gyasi celebrated like Cristiano Ronaldo, his idol and the recently departed Juventus player, by leaping into the air and pumping his arms down toward his body.
Janis Antiste, a 19-year-old French forward, put Spezia ahead by beating De Ligt on a counterattack with the help of his shot being deflected by Bonucci.
Spezia nearly made it 3-1 but another effort minutes later was cleared off the line by Manuel Locatelli.
Juventus moved up to 12th place, eight points behind leader Inter Milan.
Hellas Verona has four points from two matches since hiring Igor Tudor to replace Eusebio Di Francesco as coach after three straight losses to open the season.
Nikola Kalinic scored twice in a 2-2 draw at promoted Salernitana three days after Verona handed Jose Mourinho his first defeat as Roma coach.
Mamadou Coulibaly equalized midway through the second half for Salernitana.
Juventus finally gets 1st win of Serie A season
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Juventus finally gets 1st win of Serie A season
- De Ligt scored the winner in the 72nd minute to complete a comeback after Juventus fell behind four minutes after the break
- Juventus moved up to 12th place, eight points behind leader Inter Milan
Real Madrid victory in Super Cup semi-final sets up fourth consecutive El Clásico in Saudi Arabia
- Early Valverde rocket set the tone for a physical encounter in front of a packed Al-Inma Stadium
- 55,651 fans attended the match, topping Barcelona-Athletic Bilbao’s crowd by more than 5,000
JEDDAH: While Wednesday saw a sea of blue and red take over Al-Inma Stadium, Thursday belonged almost entirely to the colour white. The second semi-final of the 2026 Spanish Super Cup pitted Madrid Derby rivals Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid against each other in a fiercely contested encounter that ignited within the opening two minutes and ended with a 2-1 victory to Real Madrid.
In the first minute of the game, Real Madrid won a free kick from a position that appeared harmless, but Federico Valverde had other ideas. The Uruguayan unleashed a thunderous long-range strike that flew into the net, sending the stadium into raptures almost immediately.
Despite the early breakthrough, Real Madrid did not dominate proceedings. Atlético controlled much of the shot count, pushing relentlessly as they attempted to overcome the forged “home” advantage enjoyed by their city rivals in Jeddah.
That advantage was not driven solely by Saudi supporters. Ahead of kick-off, official broadcaster Thmanyah Sports got hold of a Real Madrid fan from Iraq who praised the organisation of the event and thanked Saudi Arabia for providing fans from across the region the opportunity to watch their team live.
Atlético didn’t plan on sending those fans home with a smile. They forced Thibaut Courtois into action on multiple occasions, with his save from a corner mid-way into the first half proving key in preserving Real’s lead.
Real did get close to doubling their advantage in the 27th minute when Rodrygo found himself through on goal, executing a trademark Ronaldo chop to beat his marker before being denied by Jan Oblak.
Atlético resumed their push after the break. In the 49th minute, they looked to find Julián Álvarez with a dangerous cross, but Antonio Rüdiger reacted sharply to step in and clear.
Once again, it was Real Madrid’s individual quality that made the difference. Valverde split the defence with a perfectly weighted through ball, releasing Rodrygo, who calmly slotted past Oblak in the 55th minute.
Atlético responded with increased vigour almost immediately. A slick move down the right flank culminated in a cross from Giuliano Simeone, which Alexander Sørloth powered home beyond Raúl Asencio in the 58th minute to bring the contest back to life.
As Atlético pushed for an equaliser, the Real Madrid fans rallied behind their team with chants familiar to Jeddah. Borrowing from one of Al-Ahli’s most popular anthems — one that engulfed Middle Eastern football in recent years — the crowd sang in unison: “For Real we came, from every city.”
Atlético were not fazed, as they came agonisingly close to levelling soon after. Antoine Griezmann produced a spectacular overhead kick from close range, only for Courtois to make another vital save. Moments later, Marcos Llorente broke through on the right once more, but his effort drifted wide.
Llorente continued to threaten, curling another attempt — this time from outside the box — but once again failed to find the target as Atlético searched desperately for a way back into the game.
Ultimately, Real Madrid managed to emerge unscathed, as they held on for the 2-1 victory.
Sunday will see the Al-Inma Stadium host once again, as Barcelona and Real Madrid face off in the fourth consecutive El Clásico Spanish Super Cup final in Saudi Arabia. Barcelona won the first encounter in 2023, followed by a 4-1 victory by Real in 2024, before Barcelona rallied to a 5-2 victory in the 2025 edition.
