Juventus' Superior Teamwork Beats Real Madrid to Reach Champions League Final

Juventus travelled to the Spanish capital on Wednesday evening, holding the narrowest of advantages over Real Madrid. The 2-1 scoreline attained in Turin, Italy, left the Bianconeri hopeful of victory but aware that the away goal gave Carlo Ancelotti's club a vital lifeline.

His opposite number, Massimiliano Allegri, told Sky Sport Italia (h/t Football Italia) that the second leg was “the most important match of my career” in the buildup to the game.

The coach was also confident his side deserved their place in the last four of the UEFA Champions League, but he warned that they must not go simply to defend their slender lead.

“We must play with a relaxed state of mind, because we’ve got the qualities to be here and we’ve proved that already,” Allegri continued. “We have to be aware of our own strengths. We are here to play these 95 minutes to reach the final.”

With that in mind, the Bianconeri retained their usual 4-3-2-1 formation rather than opting for a more conservative three-man defence, and they were also able to call upon the fit-again Paul Pogba. Fresh from his goalscoring return against Cagliari on Saturday—analysed in detail here—the French midfielder was inserted into the starting lineup alongside Andrea Pirlo and Claudio Marchisio.

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That was the only change from the first leg, but it would be the home side who seized the initiative, with Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema both creating good early chances before a Cristiano Ronaldo free-kick was deflected off the wall and on to the roof of the net.

Arturo Vidal saw an effort saved after a rare Juve attack before further chances were squandered by Real Madrid’s attacking trio of Benzema, Bale and Ronaldo.

Gianluigi Buffon was in fine form to deny each of them but was powerless to prevent a clumsy challenge on James Rodriguez from Giorgio Chiellini.

The referee pointed to the spot, much to the chagrin of the visitors, and their anger was compounded when Ronaldo dispatched the penalty with ease. Having wrested control of the tie thanks to their away goal, the reigning European champions began to dominate the game as the first 45 minutes came to an end.

Yet the second half would be testament to the superior teamwork and effort of Juventus, with Vidal and Marchisio spurning good opportunities before a Sergio Ramos foul presented Pirlo with a set piece in a good position.

His initial ball into the box was cleared, only for Pogba to pick out Alvaro Morata with a header, and the striker would make no mistake from the middle of the area. Beating Iker Casillas, the former Real Madrid star did not celebrate out of respect for his childhood club, showing the same restraint he displayed in the first leg.

From there, they saw out the game, tactically superior to the Spanish side as they worked together to secure a well-earned victory.

The result put them into the Champions League final for the first time since 2003, which represents a remarkable turnaround for a club who have since suffered relegation and successive seventh-placed finishes before their current domestic dominance.

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“We have a very united squad, we are all brothers here because we’ve known each other for a few years now,” Vidal told Sky Sport Italia (h/t Football Italia) shortly after the final whistle. “What Juventus have is a great team!”

That was proved here, and director general Giuseppe Marotta was similarly very pleased with the performance. "We demonstrated great personality and showed we could dig in and suffer,” he told the club’s official website before going on to praise both the players and Allegri.

"The boss got it spot-on,” Marotta said. “He could have stayed back and defended but instead decided to keep the team high up the field. They even had a few chances to kill the game off for good. We’re back in the limelight and not just in Italy."