Serie A: Ronaldo on target from the spot as Juve extend lead

Cristiano Ronaldo converted a first-half penalty as leaders Juventus resumed their Serie A campaign with a 2-0 win at Bologna on Monday.

After missing a spot kick in a Coppa Italia match against AC Milan 10 days ago, Ronaldo made no mistake in the 23rd minute and Paulo Dybala curled in a brilliant second before halftime to give the Turin side a comfortable win.

Juventus, with 66 points from 27 games and chasing a ninth successive title, extended their lead to four points over Lazio, who visit Atalanta on Wednesday. Bologna are 10th.

Juve’s failure to score in two Coppa Italia games following the end of the new coronavirus stoppage, coupled with their defeat on penalties to Napoli in Wednesday’s final, raised questions over manager Maurizio Sarri, who has struggled to impose his style of play in his first season at the club.

Juve got the breakthrough when Stefano Denswil grabbed Matthijs de Ligt’s shirt at a corner and Ronaldo drilled home his 22nd league goal of the season from the spot.

A clever backheel by Federico Bernardeschi set up the second for Dybala who curled an unstoppable shot beyond goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski.

Bernardeschi crashed a shot against the crossbar and Ronaldo had another goal disallowed for offside in the second half.