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05.11.2013 » Juventus 2-2 Real Madrid. Ronaldo and Bale leave their mark in Turin
Real Madrid's perfect record of 3 wins in 3 games got a little stain tonight, after a 2-2 drawn against Juventus, in Turin. Nevertheless, it was a good result for Ancelotti's men, who now lead their UEFA Champions League group with 10 points and are 6 points clear of Galatasaray (4) and Copenhagen (4), while Juventus is last with only 3 points made so far. With two games left in the calendar, Real Madrid has already virtually assured the 1st place in the group and with that, their ticket into the Champions League last-16 stage. As for tonight's game in Italy, it was more of what we've been seeing lately: bad defending at the back and Ronaldo taking matters into his own hands...
Cristiano Ronaldo game photos in Juventus vs Real Madrid
Juventus 2-2 Real Madrid goals and highlights video:
With the 2 goals Real Madrid conceded this Tuesday, the count now goes up to 7 goals allowed in the last 3 games. If it wasn't for Cristiano Ronaldo electrifying form upfront, the Merengues could have very well faced a lot more negative results during these first months of competition. Ancelotti keeps changing things in search for a better formula at the back, but the truth is Real Madrid is still far from looking a defensive fortress by any standards. However and despite the well known weaknesses in their defense, all sportsbook odds still seem to suggest that the Real Madrid are one of the top favorites to win this Champions League edition by offering a 6.00 factor payout. Bayern Munich with 3.75 and Barcelona with 5.50 are still holding the best chances for lifting the trophy at the end of the season though...
Ancelotti went into this game against Juventus with Sergio Ramos as right-back and Pepe partnering up with Varane in the center. The left-back spot was taken by Marcelo, as Fábio Coentrão is still recovering from a twisted ankle injury that he picked up last Saturday against Rayo Vallecano. Xabi Alonso got his second consecutive start in midfield, backed up by Sami Khedira and Luka Modric. Upfront, it was up to Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema to spark the panic in Juventus' defense.
Looking back at what happened in Turin, it's undeniable that there was a lot more at stake for Juve than it actually was for Real Madrid. With that in mind, it becomes easier to accept the dominance and full pitch pressing we've seen from the home side right until the first goal. The opener happened precisely when Raphael Varane tried to dispossess his fellow countryman Paul Pogba with an audacious sliding tackle inside the 18-yard box. The French defender made no contact with the ball and ended up clipping the Juventus midfielder on his right foot. Pogba naturally went down and without much hesitation, Howard Webb awarded the home side with a penalty-kick. Arturo Vidal marched to the spot to take it and he converted this golden opportunity brilliantly, giving absolutely no chance for Iker Casillas to even put his hands on the ball. Juventus had finally got in front and very close to the half-time break...
However, that opening goal in the 42nd minute of the first half seems to have awakened Real Madrid and we finally got to see Carlo Ancelotti's men playing some positive football. The ball started flowing more smoothly and the team moved their lines forward on the pitch, in a clear attempt to intensify the pressure. The equalizer arrived roughly 7 minutes after the break, in a counter-attack that started with a bad pass made by Cáceres that got deflected by Cristiano Ronaldo. The ball felt over to Karim Benzema, who moved up a few meters just before passing it back to Ronaldo on his left. The Portuguese star didn't get intimidated with the hostile crowd he had against him in Turin and struck the ball past Gianluigi Buffon to put things square in Italy soil.
Juventus had clearly lost the initiative and the aggressiveness levels they had shown throughout most of the first half and it was now up to Real Madrid to dictate their laws. The 1-2 was produced by an inspired moment of Gareth Bale, but it was Cristiano Ronaldo who got to set it up for the former Tottenham star. The Portuguese forward escaped Cáceres marking to receive a long pass from Marcelo, cutted inside and left the ball over to Bale on the right. The Welshman showed no fear whatsoever and even without much space to prepare his shot, he finished it off with a strong and accurate strike. Great attacking football from Madrid as the visitors had finally taken Turin by storm!
The home side had nothing to lose though and their preserverance allowed them to restore the draw just 5 minutes later. Cáceres, the Juventus man who had been under the spotlights for negative reasons after having failed in the two previous Real Madrid goals, pulled off a great cross towards the far post looking for Fernando Llorente. The former Athletic Bilbao striker got the better of Varane and easily headed it past Iker Casillas. The Real Madrid goalkeeper, who had already made two or three great stops earlier in the game, quite simply should have gone after that cross instead of staying under his goal...
The 2-2 draw dragged until the final whistle and Real Madrid was clearly the happier side walking off the new Juventus stadium. With his second-half goal, Cristiano Ronaldo reached the 8-goal mark in this Champions League edition and his 14th goal in the Champions League on a calendar year. This last achievement actually sets a new record, dethroning Lionel Messi's previous best mark of 13 goals in a calendar year. Moreover, these 8 goals Ronaldo has already scored in the first 4 games of the competition also tie the record for more goals during the Champions League group stage, previously set by Filippo Inzaghi, Hernán Crespo (both in 2002-03) and Ruud Van Nistelrooy (2004-05). CR7 has now 2 games left to score at least one more goal and break another record...
Real Madrid line-up vs Juventus:
Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas
Defenders: Marcelo, Pepe, Varane, Sergio Ramos
Midfielders: Xabi Alonso, Khedira, Modric
Attackers: Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema.
| Match stats provided by www.ronaldo7.net
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|---|---|---|
Juventus
|
vs
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Real Madrid
|
2 |
Goals |
2 |
23 |
Shots |
17 |
11 |
Shots on goal |
5 |
7 |
Corner kicks |
3 |
10 |
Fouls commited |
6 |
2 |
Yellow cards |
2 |
0 |
Red cards |
0 |
47% |
Ball possession |
53% |
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Real Madrid will be against Real Sociedad for the Spanish League 'La Liga', this Saturday (November 9, 2013). You can watch Juventus live stream, Real Madrid vs Real Sociedad, Barcelona vs Milan, Chelsea vs Schalke 04 and Borussia Dortmund vs Arsenal, all matches provided from our soccer live games section.
Real Madrid next game:
Real Madrid vs Real Sociedad kick-off time (09-11-2013):
Jakarta (Indonesia) | GMT+7: 21:00
Spain (Madrid) | GMT+2: 16:00
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | GMT+1: 15:00
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | GMT-3: 11:00
New York (United States) | GMT-4: 10:00
Los Angeles (United States) | GMT-7: 07:00
Beijing (China) | GMT+8: 22:00
Sources: ronaldo7.net / goal.com / uefa.com / realmadrid.com
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