Higuain Seals Juventus Win Against Roma

The top-table clash between Serie A leaders Juventus and second-placed Roma was decided early on by Gonzalo Higuain's brilliant goal as Juventus now sit with a comfortable seven-point lead at the top of the table. The Argentine had looked dangerous with an early chance saved by Szczesny, and on the fifteen-minute mark he managed to steal possession from Daniele De Rossi before dribbling past the Roma defence and blasting the ball into the net.

It was a tough blow for Roma as the lead let Juventus sit and defend comfortably. Luciano Spalletti's choice of starting with Gerson instead of Mohamed Salah soon proved to be a failed experiment as the giallorossi were ponderous in possession. Having ex-Roma playmaker Miralem Pjanic run the clinical one-touch passing of the Juventus counter-attacks only highlighted Roma's lack of midfield spark.

Spalletti replaced Gerson with Salah at the start of the second half but Massimiliano Allegri's halftime team talk had clearly revved up his players for a strong start to the second half. Alex Sandro had a few good runs on the left side after his fairly muted first half, and Mandzukic was proving to be a large a nuisance for the Roma defence. While in the 50th minute Pjanic had to be substituted by Cuadrado due to a thigh problem, Roma was constantly giving possession away with poorly placed passes.

Spalletti eventually took De Rossi off for El Sharaawy in the 72nd minute, shifting to a much more attacking 4-3-3 in a desperate attempt to grab a late equalizer. Roma pressed high up into Juve's half with Naingolann and Strootman cleaning up any Juventus attempts to counter, and the rest of the team working hard as Juventus players tired in the later stages of the match. Roma began to create chances but couldn't find a goal: Perrotti failed to beat Buffon after a nice setup by Salah and Manolas was only inches away from an unsavable diving header.

In the end, the best chances of the second half came for the Juventus midfielder Sturaro but Szczesny was imperious in stopping the Italian's shots. The first chance came when the midfielder was served a pass into the box by Mandzukic's brilliant backheel, and the second was also provided by the Croatian who headed the ball into Sturaro's path towards goal. While Roma finished the second half strong, Spalletti's experiment of leaving Salah out along with Higuain's early goal were both enough to give Juventus the victory.

Now with a seven-point lead ahead of Roma and a nine-point lead ahead of AC Milan, it looks like Juventus might run away with the scudetto yet another season. While the bianconeri performance wasn't perfect, Allegri's team yet again managed to do just enough to win when it really mattered.

Milan Derby an Important Test for Both Managers

Perhaps Massimiliano Allegri said it best when talking about this upcoming derby della madonnina between AC Milan and Inter Milan.

"It's the match all of Italian soccer waits for, media and players together: it's a match inside a match." 

The AC Milan coach is right, because at the beginning of the season I always mark down the dates of the Milan derby. This season's second derby of the season seems to hold quite a bit of importance, even if some are trying to downplay the significant repercussions from a loss. But the result won't have massive mathematical impact considering that the top three sides in the Serie A are all within three points of each other.

But what were to happen if AC Milan lost to this inspired Inter side? A debut derby victory (as a manager) for Leonardo would put Inter in first place ahead of AC Milan. While they'd lead their city cousins by only one point, the psychological boost for the nerazzurri would be immense. A victory for Inter Milan would also bring Napoli and Udinese a bit closer to title aspirations, tightening up the Serie A season for an exciting finish.

But there's a match to be played first, and there are a few missing players for both sides. One of the most notable ones is Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who's rib cracking (it wasn't actually rib cracking, but it must've hurt) punch on Bari's Marco Rossi earned him a three game suspension. The Inter defender who would've marked Ibrahimovic won't be playing either, as Lucio is also suspended. Because of those two absences, it looks like the Brazilian duo of Robinho and Pato will take on the central defensive pairing of Chivu and Ranocchia.

It will be Leonardo's first derby as the Inter Milan coach, and the Brazilian said a few things regarding the match, and what the derby encases:

"It will be an extraordinary match. A derby goes beyond any tactical reasoning, there are many feelings especially because the two top teams of the table are facing each other, at a distance of just two points. All of the players know each other, there's nothing to discover or invent. At a psychological level the derby brings lots of energy, but at a mathematical level it isn't decisive."

Whatever happens tomorrow at the San Siro, many will be watching. Whether they want to see a spectacular match which hasn't produced a draw in the past 14 times played, or they're just interested in the final result, people will be watching. Two men on the sidelines will be yelling at their players for 90 minutes, mainly because at the end of the day this match will have an effect on who will win the Serie A, no matter what anyone says.