TURIN (ITALPRESS) – On the eighth and final day of the first phase of the Champions League, Juventus was defeated 2-0 at the Allianz Stadium in Turin by a Benfica side that had to win at all costs to be sure of qualification for the playoffs. Playoffs already mathematically reached by the Bianconeri in the previous round, but with this defeat they further worsened their position in the standings. Thiago Motta’s men overwhelmed by broadsides of booing at the end of the match. At 16′ of the first half it was Benfica who took the lead after a series of skirmishes in the early stages: a Juventus restart attempt was interrupted and the ball was given to the Portuguese, the ball was stopped by Bah behind the Juventus defensive line and it was passed to Pavlidis who all alone in front of Perin was good at not missing. Almost nothing was the reaction of the hosts – who at 0-0 had lost Kalulu to injury, with Locatelli adapted to central midfield – who after conceding the goal never really managed to create any dangerous situations for the Lisbon team’s rearguard. Sornione, on the other hand, Benfica resoundingly came close to doubling the score in the midst of first-half recovery when, on a wrong disengagement by Gatti, it was Aursnes who stole the ball and served Pavilidis again who, however, this time found the hands of Perin who managed to deflect it over the crossbar with great instinct. Juventus more dynamic and energetic in the second half in search of an equalizer, albeit with little concreteness under goal. On 30′, however, it was an unintentional touch by Otamendi that called Trubin to the ground for a save, the most dangerous action up to that point by the Bianconeri, and this speaks volumes about the inconsistency of the Bianconeri offensive department in this match. Ten minutes from the end of the challenge, another sudden sharpness instead gave Benfica the double: with great speed Kokcu slipped through the meshes of the Bianconeri rearguard and from the distance let off a great right-footed shot that slipped in behind Perin, effectively closing the match.- photo Ipa Agency -(ITALPRESS).
