Soccer Football - Serie A - Torino v Juventus - Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, Turin, Italy - January 11, 2025 Juventus' Kenan Yildiz and Juventus' Nicolas Gonzalez in action REUTERS/Massimo Pinca
TURIN, Italy (Reuters) -Juventus were held to a 1-1 draw at Torino in Serie A on Saturday after Nikola Vlasic cancelled out Juve's early opener by Kenan Yildiz in a heated derby clash that saw both coaches sent off after the break.
Yildiz put Juventus in front in the eighth minute with a low shot from outside the box before Vlasic levelled for the hosts in first-half stoppage time with a powerful strike that went in after rattling the post.
Coaches Paolo Vanoli and Thiago Motta were sent off early in the second half after both benches protested when Juventus defender Nicolo Savona brought down Yann Karamoh just outside Juve's box.
Juventus, who are the only side yet to lose a Serie A game this campaign, are fifth in the standings on 33 points from 19 matches, but have dropped points in six of their last seven league outings.
Juventus suffered their second defeat of the season across all competitions last week, losing 2-1 against AC Milan in the semi-finals of the Italian Super Cup.
Their only other loss came in October, when they were beaten 1-0 by VfB Stuttgart in the Champions League.
A depleted Juventus travelled to city rivals Torino without striker Dusan Vlahovic, sidelined with a muscle issue, while Manuel Locatelli was suspended.
Things started off well for the visitors though with an early goal from Yildiz, who dribbled past the Torino defence and surprised goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic with a shot that went inside the right post.
The 19-year-old Turkey forward also found the back of the net when the sides met in the league in November.
Nico Gonzalez thought he had doubled their advantage in the 21st minute but his effort was ruled out for offside, while Federico Gatti's header narrowly missed the target 10 minutes later.
But Torino gained in confidence as the half wore on and Vlasic equalised just before the break.
The Croatia midfielder controlled the ball on the edge of the box and fired Torino's first goal against Juve in four games.
"There are many things that we do well, but we don't do them for the whole 90 minutes," Juve midfielder Teun Koopmeiners told DAZN.
"We have a lot to learn. The quality is there, we can all play in this team."
The goal gave the home fans hope but was not enough to earn Torino a first success in the Derby della Mole since April 2015.
Juventus face a tough run of fixtures later this month, starting with a visit to second-placed Atalanta on Tuesday before they host AC Milan next Saturday.
They then travel to Club Brugge in the Champions League on Jan. 21 before their final league phase fixture at home against Benfica on Jan. 29, either side of their Serie A visit to leaders Napoli.
Torino, who are 11th with 22 points, next visit sixth-placed Fiorentina on Jan. 19.
(Reporting by Anita Kobylinska in GdanskEditing by Toby Davis)
