Sport Serie A scores, takeaways: Juventus earn much-needed victory over Fiorentina; Spezia out of drop zone

Despite having different goals, both Juventus and Spezia entered this weekend's Serie A action needing a win. Juve, after such an inconsistent start to the season, were looking to really start pushing the top four, while Spezia's top-flight status is in risk, with points needed to escape the relegation zone and earn some breathing room. They both got exactly what they needed.

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Here's a look at the schedule, scores and what's taken place so far in this weekend's Serie A action:

Schedule and scores

All times Eastern

Friday

Empoli 2, Genoa 2

Saturday,

Spezia 1, Torino 0

Juventus 1, Fiorentina 0

Italy: Inter and Juve neutralize, Naples slowed

© Bertorello Marco Paulo Dybala (# 10) equalized for Juventus penalty against Inter Milan at the San Siro, October 24, 2021 Juventus, thanks to a penalty in the dying match Paulo Dybala, snatched a point in the field of Inter Milan (1-1) Sunday in the shock of the 9th day of Serie a, which saw the leader Naples abandon its first points against Roma (0-0).

The shine from Spezia 's first win of the Serie A season against Venezia last time out was taken off somewhat after centre-back Martin Erlic was forced to withdraw through injury. This gives Thiago Motta a selection headache at the back. The Old Lady surprisingly lost one of these fixtures and drew the other 1-1. Last season Juve did the double over Spezia in Serie A , winning 7-1 on aggregate over the two games. Spezia vs Juventus score prediction. Juventus may have endured an embarrassing start to the season but with Chiesa back in contention they will surely end their winless run against Spezia .

Fixtures. Juventus . Fiorentina . All. Serie A . Overall. Home. Away . Fiorentina will score from a direct freekick. Likely. Juventus will stray offside often. Juventus have seen over 2.5 goals in 7 of their last 8 home matches against Fiorentina in all competitions. Most Liked. Sign In or Join Us to post your comment!

Cagliari 1, Atalanta 2

Sunday

Venezia vs. Roma, 6:30 a.m. (Paramount+)

Sampdoria vs. Bologna, 9 a.m. (Paramount+)

Udinese vs. Sassuolo, 9 a.m. (Paramount+)

Napoli vs. Verona, 12 p.m. (Paramount+)

Lazio vs. Salernitana, 12 p.m. (Paramount+)

Milan vs. Inter, 2:45 p.m.  (Paramount+)

Cuadrado helps Juve and haunts former club

Juventus winger/full-back Juan Cuadrado scored the dramatic, late winner against his former club Fiorentina on Saturday with an incredible play. The talented Colombian got down the right, used his flair and pulled off a strike from the tightest of angles for the 1-0 win in the first minute of added time. Take a look:

Boy did they need that. Juve weren't particularly sharp, registering an xG of just 0.74, and lady luck was a bit on the Old Lady's side. Their xG was by far their lowest of the Serie A season and just the second time their xG was under 1.0. Their previous worse as the 0.99 they registered in the 2-1 loss to Sassuolo on Oct. 27.

And as you'll see here, they did absolutely nothing in the first half, not even registering a single shot.

The victory moves Juve into eighth place in the table but still provisionally four points back of the top four, with three teams ahead of them for that coveted spot.

Spezia earn clutch win

For just the third time this season, Spezia won a Serie A match and are now in 15th, two points clear of the drop zone after beating Torino, 1-0. Despite recording an xG of just 0.28 to Torino's 0.51, it was Jacopo Sala's incredible goal just prior to the hour mark that gave the hosts the win. Take a look at this one:

What an effort that was, and that was all that was needed as the defense stepped up. Spezia didn't concede a goal in a Serie A match for the first time all season. They entered the weekend as the worst defense in the league but recorded that cleansheet and got a momentum-building victory entering the international break.