Soccer Football - Serie A - Juventus v Atalanta - Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy - March 10, 2024 Atalanta's Berat Djimsiti in action with Juventus' Samuel Iling-Junior REUTERS/Massimo Pinca
TURIN, Italy (Reuters) -Juventus were held to a 2-2 draw by Atalanta in Serie A at Allianz Stadium on Sunday, as goals from Andrea Cambiaso and Arkadiusz Milik were cancelled out by a brace from the visitors' Teun Koopmeiners.
The match unfolded like a rollercoaster, with Koopmeiners striking first, Juve orchestrating a rapid turnaround in four minutes in the second half, only for the Dutch international to level the score in the 75th minute.
Juve, who have won one of their last seven league games, are third on 58 points, one point behind AC Milan in second place, and 17 points behind the runaway leaders Inter Milan.
Juve manager Massimiliano Allegri said he was not concerned about his side's recent struggles.
"I think we had a good performance against a good Atalanta team, they did well with that free kick and the second goal, whereas we could’ve defended better," he told DAZN.
"We were coming off a difficult period, it might not seem like it, but this is a very important result for us.
"We try to win every game, it’s not always possible, and qualifying for the Champions League is the objective."
ATALANTA STALLED
Atalanta's momentum has also slowed down and they are currently in sixth place with 47 points, having not won in their last four league matches.
"The trouble with playing every three days is that you never know what condition you will be in. We were in better shape on Thursday, we’ll see what the situation is next week," Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini told DAZN.
"It is always difficult to come here and play well. They had a thousand reasons to want to win and lock down the Champions League place, so seeing our mentality in this situation was really pleasing."
Atalanta broke the deadlock 10 minutes before the break as Mario Pasalic's free kick found an unmarked Koopmeiners on the edge of the box, who scored with a powerful first-time finish.
Juve equalised after 66 minutes when Cambiaso was played through inside the box and managed to poke the ball behind Atalanta keeper Marco Carnesecchi.
With the backing of enthusiastic home fans who could sense the prospect of a crucial victory, Juve completed the turnaround in the 70th minute when Weston McKennie skilfully chested down a cross, allowing Milik to slot it home from close range.
However, the frenzy was hushed five minutes later when Koopmeiners equalised with a low, angled shot from a through ball, securing a share of the points.
Juve host Genoa at home in the league next Sunday, while Atalanta will welcome Sporting for the second leg of the Europa League last 16 on Thursday after a 1-1 draw in the first match.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in GdanskEditing by Toby Davis and Christian Radnedge)
