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Juventus player ratings vs Atalanta: Gonzalo Higuain keeps Juve atop Serie A

By John Vaccaro

Gonzalo Higuaín during Serie A match between Atalanta v Juventus, in Bergamo, November 23, 2019 (Photo by Loris Roselli).
Gonzalo Higuaín during Serie A match between Atalanta v Juventus, in Bergamo, November 23, 2019 (Photo by Loris Roselli). /
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Juventus’ Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt (L) saves a ball on the goal line during the Italian Serie A football match Atalanta Bergamo vs Juventus on November 23, 2019 at the Atleti Azzurri d’Italia stadium in Bergamo. (Photo by Miguel MEDINA / AFP) (Photo by MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP via Getty Images)
Juventus’ Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt (L) saves a ball on the goal line during the Italian Serie A football match Atalanta Bergamo vs Juventus on November 23, 2019 at the Atleti Azzurri d’Italia stadium in Bergamo. (Photo by Miguel MEDINA / AFP) (Photo by MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP via Getty Images) /

LB: Mattia De Sciglio 7.5/10

I figured there would be a drop off in play on the left side with Mattia De Sciglio replacing the injured Alex Sandro, but you really couldn’t even tell that Sandro was gone. De Sciglio shook off his poor performance from his first match back and showed clear improvement as he played a solid defensive match. He doesn’t do much on the other end, but neither has Sandro this year. If De Sciglio keeps playing like this then there is absolutely no way Juve can afford to sell him in January.

CB: Matthijs de Ligt 8.5/10

Shortly after the rumor was started that Matthijs de Ligt “regrets” moving to Juventus, he put in his best match yet for his new squad. I think it’s safe to say that de Ligt won’t have any regrets about this match.

He was dominant in the air and made a ton of interceptions to keep Atalanta from taking advantage of the pressure they were putting on Juve for most of the match. Most importantly, he made a massive block on a shot that would have easily scored on Juve’s open net in the first half.

Unfortunately, he suffered a shoulder injury in the second half. He was able to finish the match, but now it’ll be something for Juve to worry about heading into Tuesday’s match against Atletico. Hopefully he can overcome the injury and keep this momentum going.

CB: Leonardo Bonucci 7.5/10

There isn’t really anything to say about Leonardo Bonucci that I haven’t already said this year. Bonucci and de Ligt made life miserable for Atalanta’s attack any time they tried to move through the middle of the field. Bonucci even pushed forward a little bit in this match to try and spark the attack. This man has absolutely earned his contract extension.

RB: Juan Cuadrado 6.5/10

For more than 80 minutes, this was Juan Cuadrado’s worst match of the season. It only took one pass for him to change that, though, as Cuadrado played a perfect ball in to Gonzalo Higuain to set up his second goal. Before that, Cuadrado made quite a few sloppy passes that allowed Atalanta to keep the pressure on Juve and he failed to defend Gosens on his goal. Overall, it wasn’t a great day from Cuadrado, but the assist saved it from being an outright bad one.

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