Juventus forward Jonathan David had a penalty saved, leading to a surprising 1-1 draw against relegation-threatened Lecce in Serie A on Saturday.
Weston McKennie equalized after Lameck Banda shocked Juventus with an early goal. David had an opportunity to put his team ahead in the 66th minute, but his poor penalty was saved by Wladimiro Falcone.
This draw left Juventus tied on points with fourth-placed Roma, who were scheduled to play against Atalanta later, with hopes of moving up to second place in Serie A, trailing only Inter Milan.
Lecce moved five points clear of the relegation zone.
A minute’s silence was observed before kickoff in all Serie A matches this weekend to honor the victims of a fire at a bar in Crans-Montana.
Juventus nearly opened the scoring early on when Falcone managed to deflect a header from David, which then struck the post and rolled back into Falcone’s arms.
Despite having the upper hand with several chances, it was Lecce that took an unexpected lead just before halftime.
There appeared to be little danger when Juventus defender Andrea Cambiaso played a ball to teammate Pierre Kalulu. However, it was under-hit, allowing Banda to intercept, weave past two defenders, and strike into the near corner.
Juventus equalized almost immediately after the break, thanks to McKennie, who deftly controlled a return pass from Kenan Yildiz to slot it home.
This marked McKennie’s first goal in Serie A this season, although he has netted twice in the Champions League.
Juventus was awarded a penalty later when Lecce midfielder Mohamed Kaba handled David’s shot with his arm. David stepped up, but his weak effort was easily saved by Falcone.
David nearly redeemed himself later with a powerful attempt, but once again, Falcone delivered a spectacular save. Yıldız also struck the post deep in injury time as Juventus pressed for a late winner.