Juventus were forced to work hard for a 2-0 victory over a spirited Empoli side in Serie A this afternoon.
The visitors dominated the first half, but were give an early scare when Massimo Maccarone's strike from the edge of the box whizzed past the post.
Juventus struggled to turn their possession into anything of substance in the final third, yet came close in the 15th minute as Angelo Ogbonna rifled a shot narrowly wide.
Empoli frustrated the champions and almost hit them on the break in the 18th minute, with Piotr Zielinski's effort from inside the box forcing Gianluigi Buffon into a save.
Juve's best chance of the first period fell to Arturo Vidal four minutes before the break, with the Chilean testing Davide Bassi from outside the area with a vicious strike that was saved well.
It was Empoli who went for the jugular in the early stages of the second period and twice came close through Manuel Pucciarelli, while Zielinski remained a constant threat.
The home side gave a good account of themselves, but were behind just after the hour as Andrea Pirlo belted a free kick into the bottom corner to break the deadlock.
Although Empoli continued to cause Juventus problems, the Old Lady put them further behind in the 72nd minute when Alvaro Morata latched onto Carlos Tevez's pass and found the net from a tight angle.
Tevez had a chance to add another at the death, but 3-0 would have flattered Juventus against unfortunate opposition.
Mark Langshaw
