Serie A leaders Juventus continued to stutter towards a ninth straight league title as they threw away a two-goal lead before settling for a thrilling 3-3 draw at Sassuolo on Wednesday. Juventus are seven points ahead of Atalanta, who thrashed Brescia 6-2 on Tuesday, with five games left to play after their winless run was extended to three matches. Lazio missed the chance to retake second and cut the gap to Juve to six points with a goalless draw against Udinese and are one point behind Atalanta in third.

"A coach demands continuity and at this moment we don't have it physically and mentally," said Juventus coach Maurizio Sarri. "We had very good moments that alternated with difficult moments. "It should also be said that we are facing teams that arrive in great shape, such as Atalanta and Sassuolo. We have to solve the problem of these ups and downs." Juventus were two goals up within 12 minutes thanks to Brazilian Danilo and Gonzalo Higuain. But despite the return of captain Giorgio Chiellini, the Turin giants showed signs of weakness in defence again and have now conceded 11 goals in five games.