Juventus returned to winning ways by beating Udinese 2-0.

:Juventus beat Udinese 2-0 after an own goal from Maduka Okoye and a strike from Nicolo Savona in Serie A on Saturday as the visitors snapped a three-game winless run in all competitions.

After defeat in the Champions League and two league draws, Juventus remain unbeaten in Serie A and have temporarily moved up to third with 21 points, level with second-placed Inter and four behind leaders Napoli, both with game in hand.

Thiago Motta’s side dominated from the start and took the lead in the 19th minute when Khafren Thuram’s shot hit the far post before bouncing off the back of goalkeeper Okoye and into his own net.

Savona doubled the lead when he tapped the ball home from another rebound off the post from Kenan Yildiz’s shot in the 37th minute.

The hosts tried to push ahead after the break but were unable to mount any real threat, with Lorenzo Lucca’s header hitting the crossbar as they went close to scoring.

The defeat leaves Udinese seventh on 16 points, three points off European place.

“It’s a team win because we interpreted the match in the best possible way,” Juventus coach Motta told DAZN. “We could have played a little more in the first half because Udinese allowed us to build from behind early on.

“We moved the ball and sometimes found ourselves in very interesting situations, but at that moment we lacked depth, especially with our wingers.

“Udinese have a lot of confidence at the moment, we pressed the ball well and played well.”

Juventus next play Lille in the Champions League on Tuesday before hosting city rivals Torino in the derby on Saturday.

“Today we must enjoy this important victory for us and recover for Tuesday when the Champions League returns,” Motta added.

“It will be very interesting to play against Lille. They have an extra day to recover because they played yesterday, we will have to rest well to face this match with dignity.”