March 17, (THEWILL) – A dreadful 3-0 second-leg loss to Villarreal on Wednesday ensured that Juventus were eliminated from the UEFA Champions League at the last-16 stage for the third consecutive season.
The two teams drew 1-1 in the first leg three weeks ago in Spain, and for much of the match at the Allianz Stadium, Juve appeared to be the more likely side to advance to the quarter-finals.
Unai Emery’s side, on the other hand, produced a fantastic closing 12 minutes, securing a memorable victory thanks to penalties from Gerard Moreno and Arnaut Danjuma, who came either side of Pau Torres’ close-range effort.
Massimiliano Allegri’s side looked dejected as their 12-game unbeaten streak came to an end in dramatic fashion.
Midway through the first half, the hosts came agonisingly close to taking the lead when Dusan Vlahovic’s first-time shot from Mattia De Sciglio’s low cross crashed back off the crossbar.
As Villarreal belatedly extended their muscles, Giovani Lo Celso blasted narrowly wide at the other end, but neither side was able to find a way through before the break.
Soon after the hour mark, Adrien Rabiot stung the palms of Geronimo Rulli with an audacious effort, while Juan Cuadrado blazed wide from long range as Juve continued to appear the more dangerous of the two sides.
That did not matter when Moreno scored from the penalty spot in the 78th minute after Daniele Rugani had taken down Francis Coquelin in the penalty area. Referee Szymon Marciniak was prompted by VAR to review the pitchside monitor before he awarded the spot-kick.
Torres sneaked in at the back post from a corner to bundle into the roof of Wojciech Szczesny’s net seven minutes later to increase their lead.
Then, Danjuma tapped in from the spot after Matthijs de Ligt touched his goal-bound attempt in stoppage time to complete Juve’s humiliating exit.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
