Morata double fires Juve to comeback win over Lazio
Two goals from Alvaro Morata helped Juventus come from behind to beat Lazio 3-1 in Serie A on Saturday, closing the gap on leaders Inter Milan to seven points.
Joaquin Correa capitalised on an underhit backpass from Juve’s Dejan Kulusevski before finishing well to give the visitors a surprise 14thminute lead.
With Cristiano Ronaldo on the bench, the champions struggled to create any real openings until Adrien Rabiot scored a rare Serie A goal, firing into the roof of the net from a tight angle six minutes before the break to level.
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic almost put Lazio back ahead but was denied by the crossbar, and Juve capitalised by edging ahead through a fine Morata finish in the 57th minute.
Three minutes later, Morata slotted home from the penalty spot after Aaron Ramsey had been fouled to make sure of a win that moved Juve on to 52 points, one behind AC Milan.
Milan and Inter are in action on Sunday and Monday respectively.
A third defeat in four league games dented Lazio’s top-four hopes, with Simone Inzaghi’s men down in seventh on 43 points, six behind fourthplaced Atalanta.
The Senegalese candidate for the Caf presidency, Augustin Senghor, has officially withdrawn from the race and pledged his support for South Africa’s Patrice Motsepe. With Ivorian Jacques Anouma also confirming his withdrawal, Motsepe is set to be confirmed as Caf president at the 12 March elective congress in Rabat, Morocco.
This follows the reports that Senegalese Football Federation president Senghor and Mauritanian FF president Ahmed Yahya had agreed, in a deal brokered by Fifa president Gianni Infantino, to withdraw their candidacies in a meeting in Rabat last weekend.
Senghor, in a statement announcing his withdrawal, confirmed the meeting, where it was agreed that Senghor and Yahya would serve as Motsepe’s vice-presidents.
The fourth candidate, Anouma, confirmed his withdrawal on Ivory Coast television, saying: “After several reflections and consultations, I decided to give up my candidacy for the election to the presidency of Caf.” Anouma, also part of the meeting in Rabat, reportedly agreed to a role as Motsepe’s adviser.
Senghor’s statement added: “The parties also agreed that the final agreement should be concluded in Nouakchott [in Mauritania] on the sidelines of the CAN U-2O [Africa Under-20 Cup of Nations] final on Saturday 6 March 2021.”
Motsepe’s candidacy was first announced, seemingly as a rank outsider, by the SA Football Association (SAFA) in November. The Mamelodi Sundowns owner and billionaire mining magnate and SAFA president Danny Jordaan travelled the continent campaigning. Motsepe had been backed by the influential support of Cosafa president Phillip Chiyangwa, Nigerian FA president Amaju Pinnick and TP Mazembe owner Moise Katumbi.
Previous Caf president Ahmad Ahmda, who overthrew the 29-year reign of Issa Hayatou in 2017 backed by Jordaan, Chiyangwa and Pinnick, was banned from football for five years by FIFA for ethics violations in November.
Ahmad has an appeal against his ban being heard, from Tuesday, at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) in Lausanne, but even if he is successful, an attempt by the Madagascan to enter the presidential race at this late stage would appear futile.