Juventus sounded their title ambitions with a dominant 5-0 win over Cremonese, as Jonathan David and Weston McKennie starred in a ruthless Serie A display.
Juventus made their intentions crystal clear with a thumping 5-0 demolition of Cremonese, a result that saw them draw level with Roma and Napoli and firmly announce themselves as Scudetto contenders.
Fresh off a 3-0 midweek win over Sassuolo, the Bianconeri carried their momentum into another ruthless performance, with Jonathan David again on the scoresheet and Weston McKennie delivering a commanding display.
Despite several absentees, including Dusan Vlahovic, Federico Gatti, Daniele Rugani, and Arek Milik, Juventus looked sharp from the outset. Lloyd Kelly returned to bolster the defence, while Fabio Miretti continued in an advanced midfield role. Cremonese, led by 39-year-old Jamie Vardy, were still licking their wounds after throwing away a two-goal lead against Genoa days earlier.
David nearly struck inside six minutes after capitalising on a dreadful back-pass from Dennis Johnsen, but Emil Audero did just enough to force him wide, with the shot crashing against the near post. At the other end, Michele Di Gregorio reacted sharply to smother danger after Alessio Zerbin intercepted a loose Andrea Cambiaso pass.
Audero kept Cremonese alive with a smart stop from McKennie, but Juventus eventually broke through in bizarre fashion. A partially cleared free kick fell to Miretti, whose wild volley looked harmless until it deflected off Bremer’s head and completely wrong-footed the goalkeeper. Even Bremer seemed surprised as Juve laughed their way into the lead.
Cremonese tried to respond, but their ambition left space behind. Khéphren Thuram burst forward from deep and slid a perfectly weighted pass to David, who took a touch and calmly swept the ball past Audero to double the advantage. The hosts then thought they had a penalty when Locatelli slid in on Johnsen, but VAR overturned the decision, earning an irate Davide Nicola a red card on the touchline.
Juventus soon benefited from controversy themselves as they were awarded a penalty for handball after Thuram’s shot deflected off Federico Baschirotto’s leg onto his arm. Kenan Yildiz struck the post from the spot, but with Audero brushing the ball, the rebound was fair game and turned in to make it 3-0.
The Bianconeri showed no mercy after the break. Miretti again pulled the strings with a superb through ball that sent McKennie clear, and although his finish was messy and credited as an own goal, the damage was done. Moments later, McKennie made it unmistakably his night by powering a header into the far corner from Pierre Kalulu’s cross for Juve’s fifth.
Cremonese fought until the end, forcing Di Gregorio into a stunning one-handed save and seeing a late effort ruled out for handball, while David also had a goal chalked off for offside. None of it mattered.
Juventus hadn’t scored five in a Serie A match since 2018, and this emphatic victory felt less like three points and more like a warning shot to the rest of the league.
