Milan: Juventus eased to a 4-2 win over Sampdoria to restore its eight-point advantage at the top of the table after Roma comfortably beat relegation-threatened Livorno 3-0 on Saturday.
Arturo Vidal scored twice for Juventus in a fantastic first half. Paul Pogba also netted a brilliant effort as Antonio Conte's team cruised to a record-extending 12th successive victory.
"We prepared for the game in the right way otherwise it would have been hard to beat this Samp," Conte said. "But in the Cagliari match and today we have conceded three goals from a corner or a dead-ball situation and we have to work on that.
"I always try to make sure the lads have the utmost focus because matches are never closed. That's been the difference between us and other teams in these two and a half years."
Sampdoria never gave up and its tenacity was embodied by Manolo Gabbiadini, who hit the post and the crossbar as well as scoring.
"Juventus deserved to win," Sampdoria coach Sinisa Mihajlovic said. "They were better than us, especially in the opening 25 minutes when they played at a high tempo.
"The lads aren't downtrodden, they always tried to play. This is a young squad fighting for safety which, nevertheless, in a full stadium, against so many champions, scored two goals and tried to play. The lads gave their all. We'll go forward with this mentality."
Roma briefly reduced Juventus' advantage to five points after goals from Mattia Destro, Kevin Strootman and Adem Ljajic.
"I'm happy with the win and with the three goals, even if we should be more clinical in front of goal," Roma coach Rudi Garcia said. "Now we can wait for the results of the others more calmly. That's the best way to prepare for the Italian Cup match."
Roma and Juventus meet in the cup quarterfinals this month.
Livorno, under new coach Attilio Perotti, remained bottom of the standings, with just one point from its last nine matches.
Having set a club record with its 11th successive win last week, Juventus was looking to close in on Inter Milan's record of 17 consecutive victories, set in the 2006-07 season.
Juventus broke the deadlock in the 18th minute when Pogba sent a delightful through ball in for Vidal to flick into the bottom right corner with the outside of his boot.
