Juventus kept pace with Serie A leaders Napoli on Sunday following a 1-0 home victory over Roma in Matchday 21.

Paulo Dybala scored the only goal of the match, finding the back of the net in the 77th minute.

Juventus were having a hard time breaking down the Roma defence for much of the match. Two of their most dynamic playmakers came to the rescue as midfielder Paul Pogba delivered a pass into the box to the feet of Dybala. The 22-year-old forward then beat Roma goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny at the far post.

BeIN Sports USA provided a replay of the winning goal:   

The result was more than deserved for Juventus, who were the better side on the pitch. Roma were far from abject, but they’re still finding their footing under new manager Luciano Spalletti. Spalletti only took over on Jan. 14, so he’s still experimenting with his side somewhat to see what works and what doesn’t. And a match against the reigning Serie A champions isn’t exactly the most optimal of testing grounds.

Entering Sunday, Roma ranked fourth in Serie A in average possession (56.4 percent), per WhoScored.com. Emphasizing possession against Juve would’ve been a recipe for disaster—a point Spalletti clearly understood as he put together his lineup and tactical plan.

He spoke about how he wants to be more proactive with his tactics but knows adjustments are necessary against certain opponents.

“Our approach is the same as always, to exploit our potential and our quality and create space for us to play in,” said Spalletti, per Goal’s Stefan Coerts. “We’ll look to take the game to them and give it our best shot against a team we know are enjoying a great run of form and have shown they’re a great side. That situation is not going to change unless the other team is very good as well, and by that I mean everyone around us here, starting with the club itself.”

Spalletti opted for a counter-attacking style, using Daniele De Rossi, Kostas Manolas and Antonio Rudiger at centre-back in a 3-4-1-2 formation.

The strategy proved successful through the first half. Juventus enjoyed the lion’s share of possession but registered just three shots on target. Szczesny didn’t have a lot to do, as his defenders repelled most of Juve’s attacks before they could get too deep into the final third.

Roma did get a bit lucky in the 39th minute as midfielder Miralem Pjanic handled the ball in the box, which soccer analytics expert Michael Caley argued was intentional:

The official missed the handball, which would’ve otherwise resulted in a penalty for Juventus. Not only were Juve denied the penalty, but Pjanic ruined any other chances they could’ve created in the 18-yard box.

Juventus supporters will also take umbrage with the referee’s decision to give De Rossi a yellow card in the ninth minute. As the two were standing off the ball, De Rossi appeared to get a subtle strike into Mario Mandzukic’s lower back before stamping on the left foot of the Juve forward.

Mandzukic then earned himself a yellow card in the 50th minute for putting an elbow into the neck of Rudiger. A card was warranted, but the Croatian striker disagreed, per Bleacher Report’s Adam Digby:

With this being such a big match, emotions were running high for both sides. BeIN Sports’ Matteo Bonetti assumed the powder keg was bound to blow eventually:

Tempers calmed down following the half-time interval. The match itself remained the same into the second half as Juventus probed the Roma defense, looking for the tiniest of windows with which to create an effort on goal.

Juve left wing-back Patric Evra nearly gave his team a 1-0 lead in the 69th minute. Standing to the left of goal in the 18-yard box, he had a tough angle to beat Szczesny, and the Frenchman fired his shot right at the Polish ‘keeper, who made the save.

It looked like that was going to be Juventus’ best chance of the match before Dybala broke the deadlock. WhoScored.com noted how integral the Argentine striker has been for his club of late:

Juve manager Massimiliano Allegri might be somewhat critical of his team’s work in the final third. In general, he’ll have little else to complain about, as the club won their 11th straight league match. United States women’s national team member Yael Averbuch argued the patience exerted by Juventus earlier in the season is paying off in a big way:

Juventus get Inter Milan next, with Inter looking to rebound following Sunday’s draw with Carpi. They’ll have a chance to close the gap on Napoli when the two sides clash on Feb. 13, and 10 days later is their highly anticipated Champions League fixture with Bayern Munich.

The road gets a bit easier for Spalletti as he looks to leave his imprint on the Roma squad. The club have matches against Frosinone, Sassuolo, Sampdoria and Carpi before facing off with Real Madrid in the Champions League round of 16.

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