Benfica vs Juventus: For Juventus, the Champions League campaign is all but over. A second loss to Benfica on Tuesday night eliminated the possibility of wintering with one game remaining. The day following the loss, Italian media ran the headline, “Juventus is heading to hell.”
In order to advance to the knockout round of the billion-dollar ball, Juve needed to win in Lisbon. Instead, a fight for third place is anticipated, which allows entry into the somewhat less lucrative Europa League competition.
Benfica vs Juventus: Bianconeri hits rock bottom
Massimiliano Allegri remarked, “We took a penalty that we must not take after the one-on-one match might begin. In order to finish as strong as we can before the break, we must now replenish our physical and, more importantly, mental resources. You must accept what occurred in order to channel your anger into a constructive force. Even if we need to have participated more in this game as well, the elimination did not occur tonight.
“However, following the second setback, everything became more challenging. Benfica started off playing quite quickly, and after we walked out in the second half, we already trailed. The elimination must now be dealt with, which is painful. After that, we must consider the championship, and on Wednesday, we must guarantee our place in the Europa League. Next Wednesday’s game should have been different, in our opinion. the youngsters who came in? They start to gain experience as well, and their excitement and irresponsibility are beneficial to us.”
Following the defeat at Benfica, Tuttosport asks, “Who pays for the damage? A club that generates 175 million euros in revenue annually would have lost at least 25 million euros. embarrassing defensive errors, again a lack of focus and accuracy”
The Italian media has high respect for the young replacements for the Old Lady, especially where coach Massimiliano Allegri must suffer and is strongly written to the back door. According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, only players born in 2003—midfielder Fabio Miretti, strikers Matas Soulé and Samuel Iling—were able to “wake up the team.”
Iling, an English player, was hailed by Tuttosport as “the lone light in the darkness” for his two assists to Weston McKennie and Arkadiusz Milik during his twenty-minute cameo, which helped make the outcome a little more tolerable for Juventus.
