Juventus drops more points after draw at Empoli
Juventus were held to a goalless draw away to Empoli, meaning that it has now dropped four points in its past two matches in Serie A.
This was the second league game in a row that Thiago Motta's side dropped points, coming after a 0-0 draw at home to Roma prior to the international break.
Despite the disappointing result, Juventus still went top of the table with the majority of the division to play on Monday (AEST).
For long periods of the match, the Old Lady was blunted in attack and unable to play through Empoli's high press.
But Motta's side did have its moments, with a Federico Gatti header from a corner coming close later in the first half.
Empoli goalkeeper Devis Vasquez expertly saved from Gatti before stopping efforts from both Dusan Vlahovic and Teun Koopmeiners, who was making his full league debut, in the second period.
Empoli did have a chance to take all three points right at the end of the match, but heroic defending from Gatti meant that Emmanuel Gyasi's tap-in was thwarted.
The draw means that Juventus moves on to eight points from four matches, while Empoli is in seventh just two points behind the league leader.
With the point it earned on the road, Juventus has extended its unbeaten start to the season, but this wasn't a convincing performance.
It is,though, among six teams yet to lose a league game in Italy's top flight, a group that includes Empoli.
This result means that Empoli is now level on points with the final European qualification spot in Serie A.
But it is the lowest scorer in the top half of Serie A, having managed just three goals in four matches.
