Tottenham Hotspur vs Juventus was labelled as a firecracker of a tie and the second leg at Wembley Stadium didn’t disappoint as the Bianconeri scripted a 2-1 comeback win at Wembley Stadium to progress to the quarters by virtue of a 4-3 aggregate on Wednesday night.
Spurs would take the lead via in-form winger Heung-Min Son, but the Old Lady didn’t back down and scored a quick-fire double courtesy of Gonzalo Higuain and Paulo Dybala to break Spurs hearts in the second-half.
Disallowed penalties, sparks of brilliance, dogged defending, there were many notable incidents during an eventful tie in the English capital.
The Statesman has outlined the five major talking points for you:
Juve denied clear penalty due to questionable refereeing
Jan Vertonghen was booked for a scything challenge on Paulo Dybala in the 28th minute and while the home crowd protested, it was a clear foul and the caution was warranted.
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However, the referee’s decision to award Juventus a free-kick was puzzling for just four minutes earlier, the Belgian had brought down Douglas Costa in the box with a near-identical challenge.
Both times Vertonghen didn’t get anywhere near the ball but why did the referee only blow his whistle when in a non-threatening area?
Match officials get a lot of flak for awarding suspect penalties but this was a genuine shout which the Bianconeri had waved away and had it been anywhere else on the pitch, they would have been awarded a foul for sure.
Not the first time double standards in officiating decisions have been apparent and going by the trend, most certainly won’t be the last instance.
Had Juve been awarded the spot-kick, at a time when the score was 0-0, the complexion of the tie would have been very different and its not a stretch to say that perhaps they would have progressed with ease.
Paulo Dybala clearly not match-fit but does enough
After his last-gasp heroics against Lazio on the weekend, Dybala had to start but he clearly wasn’t match fit on the night.
His touch was off and he was virtually invisible for the first one hour, save for that one run when he was cynically brought down by Vertonghen.
Still, when it mattered the Argeninte stepped up, not unlike his famous compatriot to whom he’s always compared, and struck a fine winner.
Breaking Spurs’ offside trap with ease, Dybala took his time, showing he’s probably got ice in his veins, and blasted past Hugo Lloris to break Spurs hearts.
He can do better of course, but the Bianconeri will take this for now without any complaints.
Spurs’ inexperience kills off their chances
After their calamitous start to the first leg almost cost them dear, Spurs switched off for a brief period in the second leg and were made to pay as Juve scored a quick double.
At this level, the margins are ever so fine and one cant afford to give the opposition any chances.
To think they had learnt their lessons, but alas, it was not so.
Higuain is a poacher, very rarely does he conjure chances of his own, and he has to be man-marked when his team has the ball, it’s as simple as that. Yet, nobody tracked his run as he prodded home the equaliser, which swung the momentum in the favour of the visitors.
And the Argentine was allowed time and space to pick out Dybala for the winner, as Spurs’ high backline was made to look silly.
So much for slating Gonzalo Higuain
Higuain, despite notching a brace in the first leg, had come under stinging criticism for missing a penalty that could have proven decisive in the grand scheme of things.
In the end, the miss didn’t prove to be telling as Juve went through but how decisive was Higuain in the second leg?
With a well-taken opener and a sublime assist, Higuain was contender to be man-of-the-match just by virtue of his two crucial touches in the second-half.
He didn’t do much all game long, but isn’t the striker supposed to score and be a menace in the final third?
Well, Higuain was certainly that and he shushed the boo-boys in the perfect style, with his feet doing the talking.
Allegri’s substitutions spot-on, but Pochettino waits too long?
Substitute Stephen Lichsteiner provided the assist for the equaliser and credit must be given to Massimiliano Allegri for bringing on the veteran Swiss.
That goal proved to be the turning point in the tie for Juve would go on and score a winner, courtesy Dybala, soon after.
And moments before Lichsteiner came on, Kwadwo Asamoah had been introduced and the African may not have had an assist, but he did stretch the Spurs defence on the opposite flank with his energy and pace.
In stark contrast, Pochettino took too long before sending on Fernando Llorente. Dybala scored in the 67th minute and the Spurs manager should have signalled to the bench immediately for the lanky Spaniard.
Instead, he went for Erik Lamela initially and while his patient approach was understandable, it may have cost Spurs dear.
Llorente came on with just four minutes left and unsurprisingly, didn’t get much of the ball as he failed to make a notable impact against his former side.