With a 1-0 victory over Juventus at the Stadio Brianteo, Monza pulled off the biggest upset of the Serie A season thus far.
Juventus entered this game after a four-match losing streak in all competitions, which put manager Massimiliano Allegri under a lot of stress. After being dismissed for objecting to Arkadiusz Milik’s disallowed winning goal against Salernitana last Sunday, his assistant Marco Landucci took his place on the sidelines. Landucci had presided over successful victories against Udinese and Roma while filling in for Allegri in January, and he may have had a higher profile among fans when the game began.
Nicolo Rovella’s zipping shot on the volley gave Mattia Perin a scare as Monza, who entered the game at the bottom of the table, made a stronger opening. While Juve were restricted to a few half-chances for Dusan Vlahovic, Stefano Sensi, Patrick Ciurria, and Dany Mota all had good scoring opportunities. The latter headed over from close range after receiving a raking pass from Brazilian defender Marlon.
The visitors’ situation got even worse when, at the 40-minute mark, Armando Izzo was harassed in the middle of the park by a Monza defender, and Angel Di Maria elbowed him in the chest. Despite Di Maria’s irate protests, referee Fabio Maresca was unwilling to let it go because it was close to the line.
End-to-end play characterised the second half, and Monza had numerous opportunities thanks to Rovella, Gianluca Caprari, and substitute Christian Gytkjaer. Juve came close to punishing them on the break, but Danilo wasted a three-on-one opportunity before heading over at a free kick shortly after.
Monza finally broke the tie with just over 15 minutes remaining in the game. Gytkjaer was poised to turn home from close range when Ciurria crossed to the near post.
Late in the game, Juventus had opportunities to tie the score, not least when Moise Kean had a chance to score when Weston McKennie set him up for a header and he nodded straight at Michele Di Gregorio from five yards away. Although Landucci may not be as well-liked by Juventus fans right now, Allegri is dealing with a severe confidence crisis.
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