11.12.2019 » Bayer Leverkusen 0-2 Juventus. Ronaldo and Higuaín sealed the deal
The Champions League group stage is now over and Juventus didn't disappoint their fans after securing the top spot in their group, ahead of Atletico Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen and Lokomotiv Moscow. Tonight, the Italian champions traveled to Germany to face Bayer Leverkusen and even though the Germans were the ones desperate to collect points in order to still believe in the qualification, the Vecchia Signora ended up being stronger and beat the hosts 2-0. Cristiano Ronaldo found the back of the net for the third straight game after scoring the opening goal deep inside the second half, just a few minutes before Higuaín confirmed the win by also scoring his second goal in the competition this season.
Cristiano Ronaldo game photos in Bayer Leverkusen vs Juventus
Bayer Leverkusen 0-2 Juventus - Goals and highlights:
All Cristiano Ronaldo actions vs Bayer Leverkusen:
A safe journey to Germany...
In order to advance to the last-16 stage, the hosts needed not only to beat Juventus tonight but also that Atletico Madrid didn't win against Lokomotiv at the Wanda Metropolitano. In theory, it was an extremely unlikely conjecture and it turned out that the odds were against them for a good reason. Juventus were determined to extend their unbeaten run in the Champions League and brought home the 3 points, but at the same time Atletico also didn't slip in their home game against the Russians and secured the second spot of the group.
Maurizzio Sarri knew there wasn't much at stake ahead of their last fixure of the group stages. A loss against Bayer Leverkusen combined with an Atletico Madrid win would see the two giants tied in points at the top of the group, but since Juventus head-to-head record with Atleti was favorable to the Turin side, whatever was the outcome of the results tonight, the Italian champions were always going to finish first.
Nevertheless, Sarri only made a few changes to his side and played a quite stronge lineup in their trip to Leverkusen this Wednesday night. Buffon played in goal, with a back-four formed by De Sciglio and Danilo on the wings, and Rugani next to Demiral on the center. In midfield, Pjanic, Cuadrado, Rabiot and Bernardeschi occupied the neuralgic areas of the pitch, supporting Gonzalo Higuaín and Cristiano Ronaldo upfront.
Ronaldo and Higuain made it count
The beginning of the match showed us a very motivated Leverkusen side, storming into Juventus box in multiple occasions as they tried to score an opening goal that could have changed the script for this match. Diaby still hit the post in the 11th minute, but the Bianconeri held on and as time progressed, they would eventually settle in the game and make the hosts pay for their audacity.
One of the key moments tonight happened when Sarri decided to sub in Paulo Dybala in the second half, as the Argentine would prove crucial in this game by providing the two assists for both Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuaín.
The deadlock was broken in the 75th minute, when Dybala stormed on the left to assist Cristiano Ronaldo for an easy tap-in in the middle. The Portuguese had already scored a disallowed goal shortly after the break, but this time it counted and the 34-year old got his second goal in the competition this season.
The second and last goal in this game was scored by Gonzalo Higuaín already inside added time and once again in a play orchestrated by Dybala. This time, the former Palermo star found Higuaín in a central position just outside the box and the 32-year old forward, who celebrated his birthday yesterday, finished it off with a clean shot to low corner. 2-0 for Juventus and onto the knockout rounds of the UEFA Champions League.
Juventus line-up vs Bayer Leverkusen:
Goalkeeper: Buffon
Defenders: De Sciglio, Rugani, Demiral, Danilo
Midfielders: Pjanic, Rabiot, Cuadrado, Bernardeschi
Attackers: Higuaín, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Match stats provided by www.ronaldo7.net
|
||
|---|---|---|
Bayer Leverkusen
|
vs
|
Juventus
|
0 |
Goals |
2 |
14 |
Shots |
6 |
1 |
Shots on goal |
2 |
6 |
Corner kicks |
2 |
14 |
Fouls commited |
9 |
0 |
Yellow cards |
0 |
0 |
Red cards |
0 |
53% |
Ball possession |
47% |
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Juventus in the Serie A is on December 15, against Udinese. You can watch Juventus vs Udinese, Cluj vs Celtic, AS Roma vs Wolfsberger, Manchester United vs AZ Alkmaar, Standard Liege vs Arsenal, and Wolverhampton vs Besiktas, all matches provided from our live streaming game pages.
Juventus next game:
Juventus vs Udinese kick-off time (15-12-2019):
Beijing (China) | UTC/GMT+8: 22:00
Jakarta (Indonesia) | UTC/GMT+7: 21:00
India (New Delhi) | UTC/GMT+5.30: 19:30
Italy (Turin) | UTC/GMT+1: 15:00
Spain (Madrid) | UTC/GMT+1: 15:00
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | UTC/GMT+0: 14:00
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | UTC/GMT-3: 11:00
New York (United States) | UTC/GMT-4: 10:00
Los Angeles (United States) | UTC/GMT-7: 07:00
Sources: ronaldo7.net / juventus.com / sslazio.it / inter.it
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