Sassuolo 1-2 Juventus: Player ratings as late Kean strike wins it for Bianconeri
A late strike from substitute Moise Kean saw Juventus steal a late 2-1 victory over Sassuolo on Monday night and go within a point of third-placed Napoli in Serie A.
Giacomo Raspadori had rewarded the hosts' excellent start with the opener, but a great equaliser from Paulo Dybala got Juve back into the game before Kean waltzed through to net the winner for Massimiliano Allegri's side.
Young star Raspadori went close early on, cutting inside and smashing a fierce shot just wide of Wojciech Szczesny's far post.
Sassuolo were the better side during the early throes, with Davide Frattesi's flick from a corner only just evading the crossbar. Gianluca Scamacca then brought a fine save from Szczesny with a decent drive.
The hosts were rewarded for their dominance when Domenico Berardi's inventive flick opened up the Juve defence. Raspadori latched onto it to smash his effort past Szczesny at the near post to complete a lovely move.
Juventus are typically made of sterner stuff under Allegri and responded quickly despite being outplayed for large swathes of the game through Dybala. Alvaro Morata won the ball high up and it eventually fell for Dybala, who whipped his effort past Andrea Consigli.
With Juve's interest piqued, the two sides began to share chances more evenly. Consigli was needed to keep out a Morata header at the near post before Mert Muldur was denied by Szczesny.
However, the Bianconeri kept Sassuolo out long enough for substitute Kean to turn the home defence and fire beyond Consigli.
Juve remain fourth, though they are in with a shout for third place following Napoli's recent choking form, while Sassuolo are tenth.
Juventus player ratings vs Sassuolo
GK: Wojciech Szczesny - 7/10 - Often required to bail Juventus out of trouble but will be disappointed to have been beaten at his near post.
RB: Mattia de Sciglio - 6/10 - Given a tough time by the impressive Raspadori. Booked for a foul 25 yards from goal, though it looked a harsh decision.
CB: Leonardo Bonucci - 5/10 - Juve needed their elder statesman to suck the life out of Sassuolo's vibrant attacking stars but he looked flustered.
CB: Daniele Rugani - 5/10 - Quite a massive downgrade from Matthijs de Ligt, who was left out of the starting XI. Saw little of the ball and was on the back foot for a lot of the night.
LB: Alex Sandro - 7/10 - Had provided little attacking influence throughout the game, being tested by Berardi at the other end, before he set up Kean's winner.
RM: Federico Bernardeschi - 6/10 - One nice run almost led to an assist for Dybala but was on the fringes for most of the game and didn't make much of an impact.
CM: Danilo - 5/10 - Continues to show his versatility in a number of positions, though it wasn't to a high degree of quality here. Lost his runner for Raspadori's goal and didn't look entirely fit.
CM: Denis Zakaria - 7/10 - Grabbed the assist for Dybala's strike. Had a few nice moments but he alongside Juve's other midfielders needed to take greater care of the ball.
LM: Adrien Rabiot - 6/10 - One of the worst offenders for needlessly giving the ball away. Was a physical presence but it wasn't all there on the technical side.
ST: Paulo Dybala - 7/10 - Also a tough evening passing-wise but Dybala did have the blockbuster power to draw his level with a great effort.
ST: Alvaro Morata - 6/10 - Won the ball for Dybala's strike and was a nuisance for Sassuolo's defenders to deal with. As always, probably a little unlucky not to score.
SUB: Dusan Vlahovic - 5/10 - Didn't have a shot and had fewer touches than the more decisive Kean.
SUB: Giorgio Chiellini - 6/10 - Still up for the fight, even if there's evidently not much left in the tank.
SUB: Moise Kean - 7/10 - Fantastic run to get in behind the Sassuolo defence and fire in beyond Consigli.
SUB: Fabio Miretti - N/A