Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Juventus bounced back from their Fiorentina fiasco with a 4-1 win over Udinese at the Allianz Stadium on Sunday.
Andrea Pirlo s side suffered a humiliating 3-0 home defeat to La Viola before the mid-season break, but they kicked off 2021 with a win that ensured the gap to Serie A leaders Milan remained at 10 points.
Ronaldo put Juve ahead in the 31st minute with a fine strike after Udinese s Rodrigo de Paul had seen an effort ruled out by VAR.
Federico Chiesa and Ronaldo then made sure Juve avoided going three consecutive home games without a win for the first time since 2015-16.
Marvin Zeegelaar snatched a consolation for Udinese, but Paulo Dybala had the final say in stoppage time.
20 Cristiano has scored 20 goals for the 15th season in a row among clubs and national team. Stratospheric.
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo)
Aaron Ramsey squandered a golden opportunity to give Juve a seventh-minute lead, the former Arsenal man firing straight at Juan Musso from inside the six-yard box.
Udinese almost punished Juve immediately, but De Paul s effort was ruled out following a VAR check for a handball earlier in the move.
Ronaldo burst into life shortly after the half-hour, racing into the area and cracking a low shot past Musso for his 13th league goal of the campaign.
Udinese s goalkeeper was beaten again in the 47th minute after Chiesa rolled in from Ronaldo s incisive pass.
A VAR check for handball denied Ramsey a goal five minutes later, while at the other end Jens Stryger Larsen crashed a header against Wojciech Szczesny s crossbar.
Ronaldo grabbed his second 20 minutes from time, coolly steering past Musso with his left foot, before Udinese pulled one back in the 90th minute when Zeegelaar – who had earlier hit the crossbar – lashed in from close range.
There was still time for Juve to add further gloss to a much-needed win, however, with Dybala clipping home with the final kick of the game.
6 Cristiano has scored 2+ goals in 6 matches in Serie A 2020/21, a joint-record alongside Robert Lewandowski in the Top-5 European Leagues. Bunches.
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo)
What does it mean? Juve back up and running
It could have been very different had De Paul s early strike not been ruled out, but Juve were excellent value for all three points. They had 20 shots – 10 on target – to Udinese s 10 and enjoyed 63.1 per cent possession.
They will need to rely on lady luck if they are to claim a 10th consecutive Serie A title given Milan s healthy lead, but with Ronaldo leading the charge, anything is possible.
Relentless Ronaldo strikes again
He might be 35, but Ronaldo is showing no signs of slowing down. His first-half strike marked the 15th consecutive season he has plundered 20 goals for club and country.
Ronaldo followed that up with an assist and another goal to complete a wonderful individual performance, and he has now scored twice in six Serie A matches this season, a joint-record alongside Bayern Munich s Robert Lewandowski across the big five European leagues.
Dybala comes good at the death
Dybala s late goal might just be the confidence boost the Argentina international needs after a difficult start to the season.
The well-taken dink was just his second goal in Serie A this term and came at the end of a game in which he lost possession a whopping 21 times – eight more than any other Juve player.
What s next?
Pirlo s men have the opportunity to close the gap to the Serie A summit when they face leaders Milan on Wednesday, while Udinese travel to Bologna on the same day.
