It was supposed to be a cosmic cataclysm – like what happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object. It was supposed to go Real’s way due to their sheer strength on paper as Juventus trooped out their aging heroes. But funnily enough, after 90 minutes last night, both teams would have come out thinking they have put a clear foot in the door – leading to that spot in the final in Berlin. Juventus won the match 2-1 but, importantly, conceded the away goal which will keep Real very much in contention next week at the Bernabeu.
It was not a night of sheer creative artistry and brilliant ball play. It was rather a night of dour defence, scrappy midfield possession and a few moments of striking brilliance which led to the three goals. Juventus got off to a very brisk start, egged on by their vociferous band of supporters who for a change packed the Turin stadium to the rafters. Pirlo, Marchisio and Vidal took early control of the midfield and Tevez and Morata made darting incisive runs using the space created by Marcelo’s absence in the Real defence as he used the flanks to drive the ball forward. Varane and Pepe were strong as usual centrally but the gap left by Marcelo whenever he was moving forward with Isco in tandem contributed to the first goal. Marchisio found Tevez with a perfect pass and though Casillas managed to palm off the shot, he only succeeded in deflecting it to Morata and the ex Real Madrid forward made no mistake for a close tap in (1-0).
The equaliser
Real suffered largely due to the absence of a midfield playmaker like Modric and Sergio Ramos who was pushed into the middle of the park was largely ineffective in controlling the game. There was a distinct lack of understanding between him and Marcelo and as a result the only Real movements were happening from the two flanks – through a tireless Carvajal or through the Isco – Marcello combination. Gareth Bale did not figure in most attacks, James Rodriguez found himself bottled down whenever he had the ball and even Ronaldo had to constantly change positions to get the ball in the attacking third. And life here was far from easy – as Chiellini, Bonucci, Lichtsteiner, Evra and a young Sturaro put up a spirited defensive wall in front of the Real attack force. Toni Kroos tried a few long rangers but none of them were good enough to test Buffon.
But as the half progressed, Real slowly started exerting pressure. As Juventus defended deep inside their territory, the equaliser came almost inevitably in the 27th minute as Ronaldo headed into an empty net from close range after James Rodriguez hooked in a cross from the right of the penalty area (1-1). At this point, Juventus were unable to make any strong forays into Real territory for quite some time and though James missed a sitter late in the half, the scoreline remained one all. Ronaldo had scored for the 76th time in his UCL career which took him past Messi into the top scorer position of all time.
Classic counter attack
Real started the second half strongly and were attacking in waves when Juventus scored off a classic counter attack. A corner was cleared to Tevez, who down the entire length of the field before being brought down by Carvajal. The tension was electric and the normally cool as a cucumber Buffon couldn't even bear to look. However, Tevez smashed his spot-kick straight down the middle for his 29th goal of the season and Juventus were leading again (2-1).
Real tried to rally hard but the Juventus defence held firm with a little bit of luck thrown in. Chicarito, the savior from the quarters, was introduced and so was Jese but in the end it was too little too late as Juve hung on for a well deserved victory. The match is now poised brilliantly and if Real manages to score early next week, they would be very difficult to contain on their home ground.
But, in the back lanes of Turin, the whispers have started gaining momentum – The Old Lady is back!
Rathindra Basu lives, breathes, sleeps sports and is forever waiting for the next Indian sporting triumph. Since this usually takes much time and infinite patience he also listens to music, reads voraciously and eats almost anything that moves!
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It was not a night of sheer creative artistry and brilliant ball play. It was rather a night of dour defence, scrappy midfield possession and a few moments of striking brilliance which led to the three goals. Juventus got off to a very brisk start, egged on by their vociferous band of supporters who for a change packed the Turin stadium to the rafters. Pirlo, Marchisio and Vidal took early control of the midfield and Tevez and Morata made darting incisive runs using the space created by Marcelo’s absence in the Real defence as he used the flanks to drive the ball forward. Varane and Pepe were strong as usual centrally but the gap left by Marcelo whenever he was moving forward with Isco in tandem contributed to the first goal. Marchisio found Tevez with a perfect pass and though Casillas managed to palm off the shot, he only succeeded in deflecting it to Morata and the ex Real Madrid forward made no mistake for a close tap in (1-0).
The equaliser
Real suffered largely due to the absence of a midfield playmaker like Modric and Sergio Ramos who was pushed into the middle of the park was largely ineffective in controlling the game. There was a distinct lack of understanding between him and Marcelo and as a result the only Real movements were happening from the two flanks – through a tireless Carvajal or through the Isco – Marcello combination. Gareth Bale did not figure in most attacks, James Rodriguez found himself bottled down whenever he had the ball and even Ronaldo had to constantly change positions to get the ball in the attacking third. And life here was far from easy – as Chiellini, Bonucci, Lichtsteiner, Evra and a young Sturaro put up a spirited defensive wall in front of the Real attack force. Toni Kroos tried a few long rangers but none of them were good enough to test Buffon.
But as the half progressed, Real slowly started exerting pressure. As Juventus defended deep inside their territory, the equaliser came almost inevitably in the 27th minute as Ronaldo headed into an empty net from close range after James Rodriguez hooked in a cross from the right of the penalty area (1-1). At this point, Juventus were unable to make any strong forays into Real territory for quite some time and though James missed a sitter late in the half, the scoreline remained one all. Ronaldo had scored for the 76th time in his UCL career which took him past Messi into the top scorer position of all time.
Classic counter attack
Real started the second half strongly and were attacking in waves when Juventus scored off a classic counter attack. A corner was cleared to Tevez, who down the entire length of the field before being brought down by Carvajal. The tension was electric and the normally cool as a cucumber Buffon couldn't even bear to look. However, Tevez smashed his spot-kick straight down the middle for his 29th goal of the season and Juventus were leading again (2-1).
Real tried to rally hard but the Juventus defence held firm with a little bit of luck thrown in. Chicarito, the savior from the quarters, was introduced and so was Jese but in the end it was too little too late as Juve hung on for a well deserved victory. The match is now poised brilliantly and if Real manages to score early next week, they would be very difficult to contain on their home ground.
But, in the back lanes of Turin, the whispers have started gaining momentum – The Old Lady is back!
Rathindra Basu lives, breathes, sleeps sports and is forever waiting for the next Indian sporting triumph. Since this usually takes much time and infinite patience he also listens to music, reads voraciously and eats almost anything that moves!
