Juventus vs. Dortmund: Score, Grades and Reaction from Champions League

Juventus beat Borussia Dortmund 2-1 at their home ground on Tuesday in the first leg of their Champions League round-of-16 clash. The result ensures everything is still to play for when the two teams meet at Signal Iduna Park in the second leg.

The Bundesliga outfit controlled possession for large stretches, but the better chances fell to the hosts, and ultimately, the 2-1 score was fair.

The atmosphere inside the Juventus Stadium was absolutely electric, and the Bianconeri faithful displayed a fantastic tifo before the start of the match, via Bleacher Report UK:

The early pace of the match rivaled the intensity inside the stadium, with Juventus grabbing possession of the ball and Dortmund lurking on the counter-attack. Ciro Immobile fired an early warning shot after a mistake from Juventus midfielder Andrea Pirlo, who looked shaky in the opening minutes.

The veteran maestro soon recovered, and the hosts continued to have the better of play, taking the lead after 13 minutes with their first real chance. Carlos Tevez launched Alvaro Morata on the wing, and when the Spaniard crossed the ball back, Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller made the mistake of pushing the cross down the middle.

Tevez converted with an easy tap-in from close range, escaping his closest defender Marcel Schmelzer. The New York Times' Stefan Bienkowski laid the blame with the full-back:

Bleacher Report UK were more critical of Weidenfeller, who made the kind of mistakes top goalkeepers simply can't afford to make:

Not to be outdone, Juventus gifted the German club an equaliser just five minutes later. Giorgio Chiellini slipped trying to play a routine long ball and Marco Reus took full advantage. The crafty winger used his pace to break on goal and slot the ball past Gianluigi Buffon.

As shared by FourFourTwo's Adam Digby, the Italian centre-back hasn't been his usual, dominant self this season, but Reus did well to put pressure on the veteran and find the open space:

Despite the setback, the Bianconeri continued to attack. Morata nearly found the net with a looping header, before Pirlo found Leonardo Bonucci with an excellent free-kick. The defender beat his marker in the air but couldn't control his header, putting it over Weidenfeller's goal.

Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba then clattered into Dortmund's Lukasz Piszczek, and while the young Frenchman was lucky to escape without a booking, the right-back could not continue and was replaced by Matthias Ginter. Bleacher Report's Clark Whitney did not agree with the referee's decision not to award a yellow card for the clear foul:

The hosts were also forced into an early substitution, as passing wizard Pirlo made his way to the sidelines after just 36 minutes.

Dortmund started to take control of the match and enjoyed a lot of possession around the Juventus box, but the hosts reclaimed the lead just before half-time. Pogba picked out Morata with a crisp pass, and the young Spaniard didn't disappoint. But while Pogba's pass was great, it was another defensive howler from the visitors.

At half-time, DW Sports' Alex Chaffer noted the hosts were extremely clinical, and Dortmund perhaps didn't deserve to be trailing:

Juventus continued to press Dortmund's shaky defence and had a number of minor chances early in the second half, while Immobile fired a shot straight at Buffon on the other side of the pitch.

Neither team was truly willing to open up and attack, however, and given the score, that wasn't such a huge surprise. A 2-1 lead suited Juventus' brand of football perfectly, and the crucial away goal meant Dortmund could feel somewhat comfortable heading into the second leg in front of their own fans at Signal Iduna Park.

It took until the 70th minute for either side to threaten on goal, as Tevez's angled effort took a deflection and missed the far post by inches. Immobile tried his luck from long range once again, but his dipping effort didn't even come close to ducking under the bar.

Whitney thought the visitors needed the extra goal a little more than the hosts because of Juventus' defensive prowess:

With 10 minutes remaining, a poor Marco Reus free-kick found its way back to the Germany international, and his second delivery was met by Mats Hummels, whose header hit the cross bar.

Substitute Roberto Pereyra came close to scoring for the hosts, rolling a ball just across the goal in the dying minutes. No more goals would be scored, however, setting up an interesting scenario for the return match.

Dortmund need but one goal to advance thanks to the away goal they scored on Tuesday, but Juventus easily held the German attack at bay, with the exception of Chiellini's unfortunate slip. Both teams will like their chances in the second leg, where the fiery Dortmund crowd will certainly have an impact.

Pirlo's status for the return leg also is unclear, which adds another layer of intrigue.

Relevant Match Grades

Marco Luzzani/Getty Images

Alvaro Morata: B+

The 22-year-old striker continues to impress since taking the starting role from Fernando Llorente in the new year, and his hard work was crucial for Juventus' two first-half goals. He has learned how to fight for every inch from Tevez and has become a better player for it.

Carlos Tevez: B

Speaking of Tevez, the veteran forward once again did all the little things well against Dortmund, once again underlining there are more ways to judge a striker than just statistics. He was excellent in putting pressure on the German club's back four.

Mats Hummels: C

Die Schwarzgelben were forced to field a makeshift back four, and in that situation, you expect your biggest star to be strong and calm down the youngsters around him. Hummels failed to do so, as Dortmund gave away far too much space and open looks to the hosts.  

Post-Match Reaction

As shared by Football Italia, Tevez emphasised no tie is ever finished, regardless of the score in the first leg:

Morata expects a serious battle at the Signal Iduna Park:

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