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Top of the Match
Claudio Marchisio
Juventus
Juventus
Samir Handanoviç
Udinese
Udinese
Flop of the Match
Kwadwo Asamoah
Udinese
Udinese
Alessandro Matri
Juventus
Juventus
Goal.com Rating 
Fans' Rating Udinese 0-0 Juventus: Points shared at the Friuli as Antonio Conte's men enter Christmas break unbeaten in Serie A
Claudio Marchisio went close for the visiting side during the first half but, for the most part, both sides struggled create chances.
By Mark Doyle
Getty Images
Juventus reclaimed top spot in Serie A courtesy of a dour 0-0 draw with Udinese at the Stadio Friuli on Wednesday evening.
Claudio Marchisio threatened a couple of times for the Bianconeri but they were, for the most part, frustrated by a Udinese side which only threatened sporadically on the counterattack during the second half of what was a desperately disappointing game.
Juventus started promisingly enough, with midfielder Marchisio slicing wide from the edge of the box after a clever cutback from Marcelo Estigarribia before Simone Pepe called Samir Handovic into action for the first time on 10 minutes with a well-struck effort from 25 meters out which the goalkeeper could only parry away.
Juve was by no means dominant in the first half but it did look the more incisive side, although that was not saying much.
Indeed, Udinese’s only real opening came from a mistake by Giorgio Chiellini, the defender botching an attempted headed clearance which put Mauricio Isla in on goal. However, Gianluigi Buffon was alive to the danger and made himself big to block Isla’s attempted lob.
However, the odd defensive lapse aside, Juve was relatively comfortable throughout and the club came desperately close to taking the lead on two occasions shortly before the interval. Marchisio curled just wide from the edge of the area before Chiellini drew a fine reaction save out of Handovic with his clever flick from Andrea Pirlo’s free kick.
The visiting side continued to look slightly more likely to break the deadlock in the second half, with Handovic doing well to get down low to keep out another effort from Chiellini six minutes after the restart.
However, in truth, with Alessandro Matri looking desperately out of sorts up front, Juventus never really looked like scoring.
Matri eventually made way for Fabio Quagliarella midway through the second period and the former Udinese player did inject some life into the game but when he was presented with a decent chance to win the game for Juve with seven minutes to go, the forward shot straight at Handovic.
As it was, Juve was forced to settle for a point which, while disappointing, did at least see the team climb back above AC Milan and into top spot on account of its superior head-to-head record. Udinese, meanwhile, remains third, three points adrift of the top.
Claudio Marchisio threatened a couple of times for the Bianconeri but they were, for the most part, frustrated by a Udinese side which only threatened sporadically on the counterattack during the second half of what was a desperately disappointing game.
Juventus started promisingly enough, with midfielder Marchisio slicing wide from the edge of the box after a clever cutback from Marcelo Estigarribia before Simone Pepe called Samir Handovic into action for the first time on 10 minutes with a well-struck effort from 25 meters out which the goalkeeper could only parry away.
Juve was by no means dominant in the first half but it did look the more incisive side, although that was not saying much.
Indeed, Udinese’s only real opening came from a mistake by Giorgio Chiellini, the defender botching an attempted headed clearance which put Mauricio Isla in on goal. However, Gianluigi Buffon was alive to the danger and made himself big to block Isla’s attempted lob.
However, the odd defensive lapse aside, Juve was relatively comfortable throughout and the club came desperately close to taking the lead on two occasions shortly before the interval. Marchisio curled just wide from the edge of the area before Chiellini drew a fine reaction save out of Handovic with his clever flick from Andrea Pirlo’s free kick.
The visiting side continued to look slightly more likely to break the deadlock in the second half, with Handovic doing well to get down low to keep out another effort from Chiellini six minutes after the restart.
However, in truth, with Alessandro Matri looking desperately out of sorts up front, Juventus never really looked like scoring.
Matri eventually made way for Fabio Quagliarella midway through the second period and the former Udinese player did inject some life into the game but when he was presented with a decent chance to win the game for Juve with seven minutes to go, the forward shot straight at Handovic.
As it was, Juve was forced to settle for a point which, while disappointing, did at least see the team climb back above AC Milan and into top spot on account of its superior head-to-head record. Udinese, meanwhile, remains third, three points adrift of the top.
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Top Scorers
| Player | Goals | Penalties | |
|---|---|---|---|
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Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Striker Milan |
28 | 10 |
|
Diego Alberto Milito
Striker Inter |
24 | 8 |
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Antonio Di Natale
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23 | 4 |
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23 | 3 |
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19 | 3 |