Vlahovic ends goal-drought and sends Juve top
Dusan Vlahovic scored twice to help Juventus to a 3-0 win at Genoa in Serie A as Thiago Motta's side moved top of the standings against the coach's old club.
Vlahovic scored Juventus's first goal in four league games when he converted from the spot after it was awarded a penalty for a handball after half-time.
He added his second in the 55th minute from a tight angle after Teun Koopmeiners found the Serbia striker on the edge of the box with a deep cross-field pass.
Substitute Francisco Conceicao then sealed the win with a low, one-touch finish late on.
The game in Genoa was played behind closed doors after crowd violence during their Coppa Italia fixture against Serie B side Sampdoria left more than 50 people injured.
Juventus, which drew each of its past three league games 0-0, now tops the Serie A table with 12 points from six games, one point ahead of second-placed Torino, which hosts Lazio on Monday (AEST).
Vlahovic is now one of two players to score at least two braces in Serie A this season, level with Inter Milan's Marcus Thuram.
The Serbian was bound to score from the sport having converted 18 of his 22 penalties taken in Serie A, including his past three in 2024.
Fellow goalscorer Conceicao scored 8,252 days after his father, Sergio, last bagged in Serie A on 24 February 2002, meanwhile, for Inter against Udinese.
After the match, Thiago Motta lashed out at those criticising Vlahovic for his lack of goals this season.
The former Genoa player and coach heaped praise upon his striker after the win, also hailing his defensive work as he said: "No goals conceded is a team effort.
"Scoring goals starts well with [goalkeeper Mattia] Perin and not conceding goals starts with Vlahovic.
"We have a group that wants to defend to have the ball and recover it. This is very important, a team must be solid to aspire to something great."
Motta then added: "Honestly, I think you pay too much attention to a single player. He has always been very good.
"I understand the expectations and needs of a striker at this level. But as I said from the beginning, he is a positive leader who helps a lot.
"I am happy because he scored but I was also happy when he didn't. He must improve and be more connected with the team because he is an important player in many aspects of our game. He is fine and must continue to work as he is doing".
Vlahovic, who has more games with multiple goals than any other player across the past six Serie A seasons (19), said: "The most important thing is that we won and we want to continue like this.
"It's no problem, people talk. If you score you're the best, if you don't you're the worst. It's up to me to respond on the pitch and I will certainly do so.
"Sometimes there are fewer opportunities. People expect me to solve the games and that's normal, I don't run away. I always do everything 100 per cent.
"I'm super calm and I will always give my all on the pitch. For a striker when you don't score it's difficult, but today we won and that's the only thing that matters."
