Daily Times

BERGAMO: Juventus moved up to second in Serie A with a hard-fought 2-0 victory at Atalanta on Sunday after 19-year-old English forward Samuel Iling-Junior scored his first professional goal before Dusan Vlahovic sealed the win in injury time. Victory moved Juve up to 66 points, two points clear of Lazio and three ahead of fourth-placed Inter Milan in a tight race for Champions League spots with four rounds left in the season. Atalanta created opportunities to open the scoring in the first half but failed to get their shots on target, with Giorgio Scalvini coming close with a header that beat Wojciech Szczesny in Juve’s goal but hit the far post.

Juve took the lead 10 minutes into the second half when Iling-Junior started and finished a move that cut through Atalanta’s defence, receiving Arkadiusz Milik’s pass and firing the ball in off the underside of the bar. The goal made Iling-Junior only the third English player to score for Juve in Serie A after David Platt and William John Jordan. “I am proud to wear this jersey and to have scored, it is a special moment for me and I thank my coach. (Massimiliano) Allegri is a top coach, he’s important for my growth and my career,” Iling-Junior told DAZN. As Atalanta tried to claw their way back, Vlahovic netted a second from a devastating counter-attack with the last kick of the game, celebrating by putting his finger to his lips to silence the home fans who had been giving him some stick. Having not scored in April, the Serbian forward has now scored in consecutive games to take his league tally to 10 goals this season.

Juve will now turn their attention to their Europa League semi-final first leg against Sevilla at home on Thursday. The result is a blow to Atalanta’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League next season as they sit five points off fourth place, with defender Rafael Toloi saying the defeat was “difficult to digest”. “We were not lucky, they are a strong team but we did well,” he said. “Today we go out with our heads held high, the result could have been different and we think about the next one. There are four games left and we can still have a great season.”