Juventus opened a three-point lead at the top of Serie A goals in each half from Arturo Vidal and Fernando Llorente secured a 2-0 win over struggling Palermo on Sunday in Turin.

Massimiliano Allegri’s side came into the game looking to bounce back from a disapointing last week which saw the Italian champions held by Sassuolo before losing at Olympiacos in the UEFA Champions League.

Claudio Marchisio twice went close in the early stages while Llorente headed straight at the Palermo goalkeeper in a bright opening for Juve, that had goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon to thank for keeping scores goalless when he saved from Franco Vazquez just before the hour mark.

Buffon’s saved was followed by Vidal putting Juve ahead after 32 minutes, with the Chilean midfielder ending a counterattack by slotting home a pass from top scorer Carlos Tevez.

Vidal should have doubled Juve’s lead 10 minutes into the second half but shot well over from close range but Llorente made sure of the win minutes later, heading in an Andrea Pirlo cornerkick for his first goal of the season.

Substitute Sebastian Giovinco forced a save from the Palermo keeper and also hit the post as Juve comfortably saw off the visitors to claim a seventh league win after eight matches.

With AS Roma drawing goalless against Sassuolo on Saturday, Juventus now lead the league by three points with Roma in second place with 19 points, three points ahead of third placed Udinese that won 2-0 at home to Atalanta in another Serie A match on Sunday.