Juventus stakes claim to Italian crown

April 14, 2001
SportsServer

TURIN, Italy - A vintage second-half performance by Juventus earned it a 3-1 victory over Inter Milan in the Italian first division here at the Stadio Delle Alpi Saturday night, and saw it move within four points of leader AS Roma.

After a dismal first half, Juventus got off to a storming start in the second period with Italian internationals Alessio Tacchinardi, Filippo Inzaghi and Alessandro Del Piero quickly shooting it into a 3-0 lead.

Another "Azzurri" regular, Christian Vieri, reduced arrears from the penalty spot for Inter. But the side coached by Marco Tardelli, who spent 10 glorious years as a player with Juve, never looked like getting back on terms.

It proved an unhappy night for Inter's Brazilian striker Ronaldo - watching in the stands after arriving back in Italy on Friday to resume his career after a year recuperating from injury in Rio de Janeiro.

It was a dire first half and the first stages were cat-and-mouse, with Juve's French international playmaker Zinedine Zidane tightly policed by Inter.

The first real opportunity fell to Vieri, playing against one of his former clubs, but the Italian international delayed his shot and Mark Iuliano was able to get in a challenge and put the ball behind for a corner.

Then Juve showed for the first time, with Inzaghi failing to make the most of a Zidane cross.

And then Inzaghi squandered the best chance yet when he beat the Inter offside trap, but fired over the crossbar while home fans appealed in vain for a penalty after a Laurent Blanc tackle on Juve's Alessandro Del Piero.

At halftime, neither side looked like it would break the deadlock, but five minutes into the second period Juventus found the opening.

A Zidane corner found its way to Italian international Alessio Tacchinardi, who beat Frey with a left-footed shot.

Inter almost got on terms immediately, but Juve's Uruguayan defender Paolo Montero made a timely interception with Vieri lurking at the far post.

And then the Turin giant went straight down the other end to score, with Inzaghi finishing emphatically.

Suddenly it was champagne stuff from the Turin side, and then Del Piero made it 3-0, his shot taking a deflection off Inter's French defender Blanc before nestling in the net.

Vieri pulled one back from the penalty spot for Inter after he had been fouled by Montero.

Only prompt intervention by Juve's Dutch keeper, Edwin van der Sar, prevented Vieri from further narrowing the gap. But in the end, Carlo Ancelotti's side thoroughly deserved the three points.
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