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Juventus secured a comfortable 3-0 win over Barcelona at Camp Nou on Tuesday to beat their opponents for first place in Group G in the Champions League.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice from the penalty spot, on either side of an acrobatic volley from Winston McKennie, as the Bianconeri finished the group stage ahead of their Spanish hosts.
While Lionel Messi was upbeat and stung Gianluigi Buffon’s gloves on several occasions, Barcelona was forceful in attack and Juventus had the game sewn shortly after the break.
Battle of the superstars sees a winner
In what was billed as a clash between the two best footballers on the planet, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, it was a bit of a disappointment. The former was not at his best and endured quiet moments, but his run into the area earned Juventus a somewhat dubious penalty from the start.
The Portuguese proved his mettle to beat Marc-Andre Ter Stegen twice from the penalty spot and place him on pole position, and while Messi showed superb close control, he couldn’t find a way beyond a determined Buffon. . In fact, his seven shots on goal without a goal are the highest in a Champions League game since 2003/04.
In a first meeting between the pair in more than two years, Ronaldo prevailed while Messi was left with a frustrated figure, and not for the first time this season.
Juventus left internal fragility behind on the European stage
While it hasn’t been easy in Serie A, Juventus coach Andrea Pirlo has made it through a Champions League test group to finish first in his first campaign on the bench.
Laborious performances in draws against Benevento, Hellas Verona and Crotone have proven costly domestically, and the Bianconeri needed a late and completely predictable collapse of Torino to win the Derby della Mole at the weekend.
However, in the Champions League, Juventus bounced back from an early defeat against Barcelona to advance their group, with sweeping victories over Dynamo Kiev and Ferencvaros setting up this crucial clash against Barça.
Pirlo has shown greater cunning on the European front and his team took advantage of Barcelona’s fragility, particularly in midfield, on Tuesday to secure victory. If the Bianconeri transfer this form to Serie A, then a defense from their Scudetto may not seem out of reach.
Ronaldo’s post pips Messi when Juventus makes light work of Barcelona first appeared on Forza Italian Football.
Source: forzaitalianfootball.com
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