Juventus suffered a second successive Serie A defeat as Gregoire Defrel's fine finish saw Sassuolo win 1-0 on Sunday.
Three days on from beating Sporting CP 1-0 in the Europa League, Juve turned in a tired display at Mapei Stadium, as Sassuolo dented the Bianconeri's Champions League qualification hopes.
Defrel's 64th-minute goal had been coming, with Massimiliano Allegri's team having lived a charmed life at the back while offering little going forward.
Juve found some spark late on, with Adrien Rabiot denied by Andrea Consigli and Angel Di Maria squandering a golden chance, but Sassuolo held firm to beat Juve at home in the league for the first time since October 2015.
Sassuolo carved out the only chance of a muted first half, but Nedim Bajrami failed to keep his shot down from a tight angle.
Danilo should have done better with a near-post header shortly after the restart, though Juve needed stand-in goalkeeper Mattia Perin to thwart Sassuolo soon after.
Having tipped a curling Maxime Lopez shot wide, Perin pulled off a fantastic save from Defrel's close-range header.
Perin could only stand and watch as Federico Gatti headed against the woodwork just after the hour, Juve coming away unscathed after the defender's awful attempt at a clearance.
Yet the pressure eventually told – Defrel arrowing in a brilliant finish on the spin after Nicolo Fagioli's dreadful clearance fell his way.
Juve finally sparked into life, with Rabiot's header forcing Consigli into a superb save before substitute Di Maria blazed over as the visitors' comeback attempts proved fruitless, with Paul Pogba's late cameo from the bench unable to inspire an equaliser.
Nashville SC v San Jose Earthquakes: ‘A win would change everything’ - Godoy
Anibal Godoy insists that Nashville are already looking at their game against San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday as a must-win.
Nashville have won just once in the MLS this season and sit in 14th place in the Eastern Conference after a run of four without a win.
The Earthquakes, meanwhile, are bottom of the Western Conference having lost eight of their matches and recording just one win.
Godoy is aware of how their poor start to the season could affect their playoff hopes later down the line but is confident that Nashville can turn things around.
He said: “For us, it's an important week. It's a day we have to win, or we'll start to feel the pressure from other teams as they start to separate in the table.
“This league is long but if we want to get to the playoff you have to win games early on, especially at home.”
Liverpool agree compensation deal for Slot
Liverpool and Feyenoord have reached an agreement in principle over a compensation deal for Arne Slot to become the Reds’ manager next season, according to widespread Dutch media reports.
The Dutchman is reportedly poised to take over from Jurgen Klopp, who announced in January that he would be leaving the club at the end of the campaign.
Slot led Feyenoord to their second Eredivisie title last season after taking over the club in 2021.
It is believed that he topped the list of Liverpool’s favoured candidates due to his attacking playing style and ability to develop players.
Former Liverpool midfielder, Xabi Alonso, who led Bayer Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title, and Sporting CP’s Ruben Amorim were also reported contenders to take over from Klopp.
Slot had already confirmed his interest in managing in the Premier League, both earlier this week and previously when he was linked to Tottenham in 2023.
QPR 4-0 Leeds United: Shock loss for Farke's men seals Leicester's promotion
QPR thrashed Leeds United 4-0 in the Championship on Friday, ensuring Leicester City booked their promotion straight back to the Premier League.
Ilias Chair was the star for the Hoops as he scored the opener and assisted two more goals to ensure QPR will stay in the Championship for another season.
Lucas Andersen, Lyndon Dykes and Sam Field also got their names on the scoresheet in an emphatic win for Marti Cifuentes' side.
Leeds' heaviest defeat of the season was a huge blow in the race for an automatic promotion spot, with Ipswich Town just one point behind them in third place with two games in hand going into their away clash against Hull City on Saturday.
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