Juventus crush NEC Nijmegen 5-0 in Europa League opener

Luciano Spalletti’s side came into the game after a surprise 3-2 defeat to Sassuolo at the weekend. They put that result behind them quickly. 

Match highlight

Juventus took the lead after nine minutes helped by a costly mistake from NEC goalkeeper Nikolas Polster.

Polster rushed from his area to meet a ball but could not get to it before Nico González. The Juventus forward beat Polster to the ball. Rolled his finish into an empty net.

NEC tried to respond through Noé Lebreton, who turned sharply in the box before firing a shot that was saved.. Juventus soon took control again.

Nick Woltemade was denied by Polster for Kerim Alajbegović to collect the loose ball and strike from around 20 metres. The shot flew into the corner to double the Juventus lead.

The side’s night got worse in the 35th minute. González was brought down by Almugera Kabar in the penalty area. Woltemade converted the spot-kick to make it 3-0 before half‑time for Juventus.

NEC had an attempts to change the course of the match. Ayodele Thomas tried his luck from distance before the break while Dennis Geiger mis‑hit an effort in the second half. Juventus however were rarely under pressure after the interval.

Spalletti made three substitutions on the hour with one eye on the Serie A meeting with Atalanta at the weekend. Juventus still added two goals.

New signing Zeki Çelik made it four in the minute finishing from close range after Randal Kolo Muani sent a precise low cross into the box. Polster had again come off his line. He could not stop the move for Juventus.

Francisco Conceição then struck the post before Kolo Muani completed the scoring. The French forward took advantage of another misjudgement from Polster, who raced out for a pass but missed the ball completely leaving Kolo Muani with a simple finish for Juventus.

The result means Juventus have now won 11 of their 14 home matches against opponents. NEC have gone four games without a win, in all competitions.