Juventus secured a fourth successive Serie A win by beating Palermo 3-0 to move up to fifth in the table this evening.

Mario Mandzukic made the breakthrough with a header five minutes into the second half, before Stefano Sturaro and substitute Simone Zaza scored late on to clinch the win.

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Much of the first half was dominated by the visitors as they controlled the tempo without stretching the Palermo defence on too many occasions, but they were close to an early opener when a Juan Cuadrado cross just evaded Mandzukic at the back post.

It was a sign of what was to come in a frustrating opening 45 minutes for Massimiliano Allegri's side, who were rarely threated by Palermo on the break.

Leonardo Bonucci should have handed the lead to his side when poor marking allowed him to meet a corner with a free header, but he could only send the ball wide of the post.

Juventus returned from the interval with a quicker tempo to their attacking play, and their front two unlocked the Palermo defence as Paulo Dybala, who was returning to Palermo for the first time since his summer exit, drifted out wide to deliver an inviting cross which Mandzukic headed home at the back post.

Palermo enjoyed a spell on top after falling behind, but they struggled to cause problems for the Juventus defence, with Alberto Gilardino often being left isolated.

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The win was secured in the final minute of normal time as Juventus took advantage of a tiring Palermo side to double the lead through Sturaro, who collected Paul Pogba's pass before firing past Stefano Sorrentino.

Two substitutes combined to pile more misery on Palermo in stoppage time as Zaza linked up with Morata on the edge of the box before surprising Sorrentino to find the bottom corner with a low strike as Juventus moved six points behind leaders Inter Milan.