UEFA Champions League: Juventus vs Porto

A huge European night in Turin on Tuesday as Andrea Pirlo must turn the tie around if Juventus’ European hopes are to go on. A disappointing display from the Italian giants in Portugal was capitalized on by Porto, as they now travel to Italy with a narrow 2-1 lead.

Juventus vs Porto

Juventus are a team that is littered with talent but results in this season haven’t always gone their way. They sit third in Serie A, and they must win European silverware.

The reason Juventus signed Cristiano Ronaldo a few years ago, is to become kings of Europe, but it hasn’t worked out. While Ronaldo shines most nights in the Juventus jersey, he has fallen off a bit, and not enough players have stepped up…

One man who has is Alvaro Morata, who has been in sparkling form since his return to the club. The latter has been out with an illness, while Ronaldo only saw 20 minutes of gameplay against Lazio at the weekend, due to apparent fatigue. The game against Lazio saw key players like Mortata and Bonucci return from injury just in time, while the rumored lineup of Ronaldo and Morata up top pose a deadly threat should they start here [1].

There’s no doubt that Juve will still be favorites to win the tie and qualify, but they have been conceding far too many goals this season and Porto will be a threat on the counter against an aging slow defense.

Should Porto score, Juventus will have to score two to at least see the extra time, or three if they are to go through automatically. It will be interesting to see what Juventus show up if Porto can somehow repeat the performance from two weeks ago.

Porto is having their own issues at the moment, with rumors of mental fatigue being the issue a few days ago as they were knocked out of the Portuguese cup by Braga. They are some way off the pace in the race for the league title, currently 10 points behind leaders Sporting Lisbon, but they are a threat.

They are definitely in with a chance of heading through if they can put up a repeat performance, but Juventus were desperately poor on the night and likely won’t play that bad again. While it’s possible that they will get dominated in terms of possession and chances, if a chance comes, they must be switched on and ready to pounce on it.

The team has form in their own domestic league, having not been beaten since the end of October, but far too many draws have seen them slip up time and again [2]. Two key players in Pepe, and Corona are rumored to be injured, but whether they will miss the game or not is yet to be known.

Porto will need luck on their side if they are to reach the last 8, which would be some achievement, and if they show up with the right attitude to fight for everything for 90 minutes, they do have every chance.

Energy will be needed from the side, from the first whistle to the last, and they’ve already proven that they can score and beat a strong Juve side. Whether players can rise to the occasion again, or let it get the better of them is yet to be seen. It’s bound to be a grueling night in Turin for the Porto players.

Prediction: To Qualify-Juventus

I can’t see any other result other than Juventus qualifying through to the next stage.

They have the experience of top players in Europe all throughout their side and they know the importance of this tie, and this team bringing this Champions League trophy back to Turin.

It’s a huge ask for Porto to beat Juventus over two legs, and their backs will be against the wall for 90 minutes of pressure. Even if Porto scores, Juventus should on their day be comfortable against the side, while players like Ronaldo, Bonucci, and Chiellini won’t allow a repeat performance of the first leg.