Juventus responded emphatically to their 3-2 defeat by Sassuolo, beating NEC Nijmegen 5-0 at the Allianz Stadium in their opening Europa League league-phase match. Five different players found the net as the Bianconeri took control of the contest with a dominant first-half display.
The result also brought three first goals for Juventus players, while Kamil Grabara marked his debut with an assist. NEC enjoyed periods of possession and created several opportunities, but Juventus’ defence and goalkeeper Grabara prevented the visitors from seriously threatening the hosts.
Juventus makes a perfect Europa League start
Juventus needed less than nine minutes to take the lead after a major mistake from NEC. Grabara sent a long ball forward on his Juventus debut, while stand-in NEC goalkeeper Nikolas Polster rushed out of his area and completely misjudged the flight.
Nico Gonzalez took advantage, going around Polster before calmly rolling the ball into an empty net. The goal gave Grabara an assist on his first appearance for the club.
Alajbegovic doubled the advantage in the 24th minute. Weston McKennie carried the ball forward before finding the Bosnian on the edge of the penalty area, where he drilled his shot into the top corner for his first goal since arriving during the summer.
Juventus added a third ten minutes later when Almugera Kabar brought down Gonzalez inside the area. Nick Woltemade sent Polster the wrong way from the penalty spot to register his first Juventus goal.
NEC Nijmegen creates chances after the break
Despite the scoreline, NEC were not simply passive throughout the match. They had seven shots compared with Juventus’ five by half-time and enjoyed more possession, increasing their share to 67% during the opening 15 minutes of the second half.
Ayodele Thomas provided the visitors’ main threat, testing Grabara twice and beating Federico Gatti before delivering from the left. Dennis Geiger, who came on early after Clement Bischoff’s injury, also sent an effort narrowly over the crossbar.
Grabara remained largely untroubled, while Juventus’ defence continued to restrict NEC’s attacking opportunities. Luciano Spalletti also used his substitutes as the match progressed, with Gleison Bremer replacing McKennie on the hour as the American continued his return from injury.
Francisco Conceicao and Teun Koopmeiners also entered the game, replacing Gonzalez and the booked Douglas Luiz. Perr Schuurs came on in the 67th minute and was greeted by boos from the home supporters.
Juventus completes a five-goal Europa League win
Randal Kolo Muani needed only four minutes after replacing Alajbegovic to contribute to the scoring. He beat Tobias Storm and cut the ball back for Zeki Celik, who tapped home Juventus’ fourth goal and another first for the night.
Kolo Muani then got on the scoresheet himself in the 82nd minute. Jhon Lucumi released the Frenchman, who finished in a similar fashion to Gonzalez’s opener after Polster once again came charging out.
Conceicao came close with a long-range effort, while Augusto Owusu was given a late appearance. By then, however, the outcome had long been settled as Juventus completed a 5-0 victory.
For Spalletti, whose position had been openly discussed before kick-off and who had received public backing from sporting director Frederic Massara earlier in the day, the emphatic result provided some breathing space.
