Bianconeri beat Standard Liege with Miretti strike | OneFootball

The Juventus Men’s First Team secured a 1-0 victory away against Standard Liege in their second 2026/27 pre-season friendly.

The only goal of the match came in the 55th minute, with Fabio Miretti hitting a stunning strike into the top corner from a free-kick move. The game saw plenty of young players get a chance to impress, with Standard posing a stern test.

A CLOSE FIRST HALF

The first chance of the match came in the 4th minute, when Vasilije Adzic tried his luck from distance but failed to trouble Matthieu Epolo. Early on, Juventus also put together a good move involving Adin Licina and Adzic, but the Montenegrin’s cross was easily saved by the goalkeeper.

The Bianconeri gradually took control of the game and, after a promising start, created their best chance in the 19th minute: Pierre Kalulu broke down the right and delivered a precise cross into the box for Douglas Luiz, who rose highest to meet it with a header but sent the ball over the bar.

Standard posed a threat mainly on the counter-attack. In the 9th minute, Timothe Nkada failed to capitalise on a promising move down the left flank, whilst in the 21st minute, Alexis Trouillet shot from the edge of the box following a Juventus turnover, only for Federico Gatti to make a crucial deflection that conceded a corner.

As the minutes ticked by, the pace slowed and chances became fewer. The Bianconeri tried again from a corner through Manuel Locatelli, who in the 26th minute struck a volley that failed to hit the target, and subsequently with a couple of crosses from Andrea Cambiaso and Douglas Luiz that came to nothing. In the closing stages, Kalulu won the ball high up the pitch and earned a corner, but the score remained unchanged.

MIRETTI SEALS THE WIN

After a slow start to the second half, Juventus began to step up a gear and created a dangerous chance in the 48th minute through the newly-introduced Justin Oboavwoduo, whose shot was deflected for a corner.

The moment that decided the match came in the 55th minute. Having won a free-kick on the edge of the box, Fabio Miretti finished off a Bianconeri move with a powerful right-footed strike that gave the Standard goalkeeper no chance, making it 1-0. A minute later, Miretti again came close to a brace: he rounded the Belgian goalkeeper, but Ibe Hautekiet cleared off the line to deny him.

Standard tried to respond and stepped up the pressure. In the 59th minute, Kalulu came to the rescue with a last-ditch tackle that prevented the equaliser. The home side continued to push forward, but Juventus defended in an organised manner, relying in part on the defensive work of Manuel Locatelli and Kalulu himself.

In the closing stages, Luciano Spalletti’s side managed their lead, despite being under pressure from Standard. Oboavwoduo came close to doubling the lead in the 77th minute with a fine solo run that tested the Belgian goalkeeper, whilst Mattia Perin was called upon to make crucial saves, first from Rayan Touzghar’s long-range effort and, most notably in the 91st minute, when he made a superb save from Bernard Nguene’s shot, securing the victory.

The Bianconeri return to Italy with a victory and plenty of useful insights ahead of their third friendly against Nice.