Juventus missed the chance to climb into fourth place in Serie A after being held to a 1-1 draw by Sassuolo in Turin, with Manuel Locatelli seeing a late penalty saved in what could prove to be a costly result in the race for Europe.
The Bianconeri made a strong start and took the lead inside the opening quarter hour. Mattia Perin’s long ball launched a quick attack, Francisco Conceicao drove forward down the right, and Kenan Yildiz applied a composed first-time finish into the bottom corner to put Juventus ahead.
Juventus looked the more dangerous side for much of the first half and nearly doubled their advantage soon after, with Yildiz testing Arijanet Muric, and Pierre Kalulu also going close after more positive work from Conceicao. Sassuolo, however, stayed in the contest despite creating little before the interval.
The visitors found their equaliser seven minutes into the second half. Domenico Berardi delivered a low ball into the area, and Andrea Pinamonti got in front of Gleison Bremer to steer home, bringing Sassuolo level and changing the momentum of the contest.
Juventus pushed hard for a winner in the closing stages and were handed a golden chance four minutes from time when Jay Idzes was penalised for handball inside the area. Locatelli stepped up, but his tame effort was read well by Muric, who made the save to preserve Sassuolo’s point.
The result means Juventus remain outside the top four and failed to take advantage of the opportunity to move above Como, while Sassuolo collected a respectable away point, even if their broader push towards the European places now looks increasingly unlikely.
