Weston McKennie and Timothy Weah struggled to make an impact in Juventus' draw with Genoa on Sunday afternoon.
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Juventus host GenoaMcKennie subbed after an hourVlahovic sent offWHAT HAPPENED?
Juventus took some time to grow into the fixture in the first half, with McKennie playing a limited role in the opening stages. However, not as limited as Weah – who was once again on the bench to start this clash.
Neither side carved out any real goal-scoring opportunities before the break, and a degree of angst grew amongst the crowd as they watched their side head down the tunnel.
It was much of the same in the second half, too. Sloppy passes, a lack of cutting edge in the final third and no real cohesiveness – from both sides. As the game ticked past the hour mark, Massimiliano Allegri made a flurry of changes in an attempt to find an attacking spark for his side, which almost arrived as Samuel Iling Junior hit the post shortly after coming on.
Despite the changes making Juventus slightly more threatening, their frustrations ultimately boiled over as Dusan Vlahovic was shown two quick-fire yellow cards for his reaction to a decision made by the referee. A frustrating afternoon for Allegri's side, who were forced to settle for a draw.
AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Juventus had an opportunity to leap-frog Christian Pulisic's AC Milan in the Serie A table in this early fixture – with just a one-point gap separating the two sides heading into the game. While they did manage to jump into second place with a draw due to goal difference, the fixture marked a missed opportunity to put pressure on Milan ahead of their clash against Verona.
GettyUSMNT IMPACT
The Old Lady struggled to gain sufficient control of the fixture during the first half, meaning McKennie was not given the opportunity to show his quality in possession as much as he would've liked. The midfielder was also lucky to escape a booking for a cynical shirt pull, as his frustrations built towards the interval.
He did attempt to take a more hands-on approach after the break, although was often frustrated by the deep-lying defence of Genoa. McKennie was eventually substituted in the 60th minute, along with Federico Chiesa and Filip Kostic, as something had to change for Juventus. His USMNT teammate Weah was brought on with just over ten minutes to go but met the same frustrating fate in this fixture.
Getty ImagesGOAL'S RATINGS
Weston McKennie (4/10):
Not a lot for fans to cheer about regarding his showing. He didn't do anything wrong and didn't get the time on the ball to have any say going forward. In search of a spark, he was substituted just before the hour mark.
Timothy Weah (5/10):
Brought on as a substitute in the dying embers of the game and didn't have much to do. Tough day for the USMNT duo and their Juventus team as a whole.