Juve beat relegated Venezia to secure Champions League spot

Milan, Italy: Juventus qualified for the Champions League on Sunday, beating relegated Venezia 3-2 to pip Roma, 2-0 winners at Torino, to Serie A´s final spot by a single point.

Manuel Locatelli´s penalty in the 73rd minute won a exciting contest on the Venice Lagoon and secured Juve fourth place on the final day of an eventful season. “It wasn´t easy with three matches away from home against direct rivals in the final few weeks. It´s a good achievement. I´m happy,” said Juve coach Igor Tudor, who, Italian media have reported, is to be replaced by Antonio Conte this summer.

Tudor, who took over from sacked Thiago Motta in March, said his fate would be made public before the upcoming Club World Cup which starts next month. “Before, before. We´ll know soon and that´s the right way to do it,” said Tudor.

“If someone goes there but has no future at the club it´s not right that they go there. But not for me, for the club.” Juve looked set for a straightforward win when quickfire goals from Kenan Yildiz and Randal Kolo Muani put them ahead on the half-hour, after they had fallen behind to Daniel Fila´s strike in the second minute.

But Ridgeciano Haps gave Venezia, who had to win to have any chance of staying up, hope of survival nine minutes after the break and put Roma briefly fourth. Claudio Ranieri´s Roma were two goals ahead at that point through a Leandro Paredes penalty in the 18th minute and Alexis Saelemaekers´ header seven minutes after the break, with fans of the capital club hoping Venezia would hold out.

However, Locatelli calmly stroked Juve back into the lead and into Europe´s top club competition after Francisco Conceicao was clumsily brought down in the penalty area by Hans Nicolussi Caviglia.

Ranieri ended his coaching career just missing out on giving Roma their first Champions League qualification since 2018, after dragging his boyhood club up from near the relegation spots following his second return in November.

“We´re sorry for the fans, but we gave everything and when you give everything you can only be satisfied,” said Ranieri, who retires for the second time in the space of a year. Ranieri remained coy on who would replace him for next season, only saying that “the president will decide when to announce his appointment”. Como´s Cesc Fabregas and Gian Piero Gasperini, whose third-placed Atalanta lost 3-2 at home to Parma, are the most commonly reported names cited as Ranieri´s successor.