Revitalised Vucinic gives Juve second wind
Reuters - Thursday 22 March 2012, 12:11
Mirko Vucinic has finally sprung
into action to breathe new life into Juventus's bid for a
domestic double just as it seemed to be grinding to a halt.
The Montenegro forward has scored three goals in his last
four matches for Juve who renew one of Italy's fiercest
rivalries when they host crisis club Inter Milan in Serie A on
Sunday.
Inter, where media speculation is rife about beleaguered
coach Claudio Ranieri's future, appear easy pickings for
second-placed Juve as they try to narrow AC Milan's four-point
lead at the top of the table.
Vucinic has been a 15 million euro disappointment since leaving AS Roma in August, managing only
three goals until the start of this month.
A player with a reputation for inconsistency, he has
repeatedly frustrated team-mates and supporters with his
tendency to go it alone instead of passing to better-placed
colleagues.
However, Vucinic came to life at the start of this month
with a superbly-taken goal at Bologna which gave Juve a 1-1 draw
and spared them their first defeat of the season.
Having then missed out in a 0-0 draw against Genoa, his
exquisite curling shot opened the way for Sunday's 5-0 rout of
Fiorentina and on Tuesday he scored the extra-time goal against
Milan which took Juve to the Italian Cup final in thrilling
style.
"I was playing well before but the goals didn't come," he
said echoing the words of coach Antonio Conte.
"Now I'm scoring with continuity but this isn't the main
aspect. The most important thing is the team achieve positive
results," Vucinic told the club's website.
SNEIJDER DOUBT
Midfielder Wesley Sneijder is doubtful for Inter although
Colombian midfielder Fredy Guarin, hampered by a calf injury,
may finally make his debut following his January loan move from
Porto.
Inter's season has disintegrated in the last two months with
the 2009/10 treble winners dropping to seventh place and being
knocked out of the Champions League by Olympique Marseille.
Ranieri denied reports out-of-form striker Diego Forlan had
refused to go on as a substitute in last week's 0-0 draw with
Atalanta, a match that president Massimo Moratti left at
half-time.
With Inter seven points behind Lazio, who are third in the
Champions League play-off spot, Ranieri looks almost certain to
leave at the end of the season, if not before.
Although it has been a good week for Juve, they have still
left themselves with a difficult task after drawing six out of
seven Serie A games before the win at Fiorentina.
Having led the table with games in hand, they are now
playing catch-up with Milan who host Roma on Saturday and
at the moment do not look like dropping many points.
Despite being hit by injuries, Massimiliano Allegri's team
have won their last three games without conceding a goal and
with only 10 matches to play it is becoming difficult to imagine
them squandering their lead.