Yeah, still doesn’t feel great.
Juventus were so close—so close—to making some history in the second leg of their Champions League playoff tie against Galatasaray. They fought from 5-2 down on aggregate to even the tie 5-5, playing almost the entire half (and scoring two of their three goals) with 10 men on the field after an incredibly questionable call sent Lloyd Kelly to an early shower.
They had a few chances to win it—once in regular time, once at the beginning of extra time—but missed the target
both times, and by that point, the toll of playing a man down for so long had taken its toll. Rapidly losing energy, the Bianconeri were finally breached late in the first half of extra time, and surrendered another goal at the death, winning the game 3-2 but falling out of the tournament 7-5 on aggregate.
It was a heroic performance, but the scatterbrained second half the week before in Istanbul proved decisive. It’s a result that will leave a bitter taste, knowing they had come so close, and that just one or two fewer mistakes in the first leg—or a referee with some sense—could have seen them advance to the round of 16.
How did Juve’s players fare man for man as they brushed history? Let’s take a closer look.
MATTIA PERIN – 6. Made some good saves in the first half, but ultimately wasn’t the busiest of men. Did all he could on the two goals, but he was stranded both times.
PIERRE KALULU – 7.5. Fantastic defensively all night long, not letting Noa Lang get much of anything going in his sector of the field. Would have had the assist on Federico Gatti’s goal but for a touch by the keeper.
FEDERICO GATTI – 7. By the end of the game was one of the only pure defender on the field. Did pretty well keeping Osimhen out of the most dangerous places, forcing most of his six shots to be relatively tame saves. He was a little bit out of position when the Nigerian scored, but looked like he was going on fumes by that point. He was a huge help offensively, narrowly missing a few headers before poaching one at the far post to put the game fully on.
LLOYD KELLY – 5.5. This has nothing to do with the red card, which was entirely unjustified, but he wasn’t having a great match even before that. He only completed 57.1 percent of his passes and wasn’t as good defensively as his partner.
WESTON McKENNIE – 8.5. Obviously, the goal that leveled the tie was huge, but McKennie wsa so much more than just that moment. He played at every level of the field throughout the game, going from emergency left-back—and easily the best of the three left-backs that played for Juve in the tie—to the left wing, to a false nine. He seemed like he was everywhere, and at each spot he was effective. He led the team with four key passes, and he kept Baris Yilmaz, who had absolutely terrorized Andrea Cambiaso and Juan Cabal, almost completely silent until he started moving around the field. If there’s one criticism for him, it’s that he could’ve taken that shot in the 96th minute instead of shuttling it on for Edon Zhegrova. The new contract he’s rumored to be signing is richly deserved.
TEUN KOOPMEINERS – 6. Great header back across goal to get the assist on McKennie’s strike. Had one other key pass and three tackles, but he wasn’t quite as influential as he’d been last week—although that’s partly because he dropped back a lot to help out defensively once Kelly was sent off. Still, though, this mezz’ala role might finally be where this dude needs to be in Turin.
MANUEL LOCATELLI – 8. Knew that he wasn’t going to be playing against Roma, so he completely emptied the tank. He made seven tackles, three key passes, almost scored a long-distance screamer, and was nails when he stepped to the penalty spot to start the comeback. When he came off he could barely move. As much he’ll be missed on Sunday, he also deserves a rest after this one.
KHÉPHREN THURAM – 6.5. Had a really good game, carrying the ball through Gala’s lines when passing failed. His decision making could still use a little bit of work, especially that chip right before McKennie equalized. But this is the Thuram Juve need for the rest of the season.
FRANCISCO CONCEIÇÃO – 6. Got into dangerous spaces regularly, but still isn’t using those spaces effectively. His end product overall didn’t produce the kind of danger in front of goal that he ought to be. He did come quite close to an opener in the early going, but bent his shot a whisker wide. He’s got oodles of talent, but needs to be refined.
JONATHAN DAVID – 5. Made only one key pass and didn’t attempt a shot. He simply didn’t have his first touch today, exemplified by the mystifying touch he had in the box at the end of the first half.
KENAN YILDIZ – 7. Made three key passes and hit the target with two shots out of six. He was unlucky not to get the third goal a little early when he diverted a cross from Boga just off the post. He was totally shot when he finally came off.
SUBS
JÉRÉMIE BOGA – 6. Put in some good balls, and freed up Yildiz to move around a little more.
EDON ZHEGROVA – 5.5. That miss will live long in our memories for quite a while. A horrible mishit that marks the nadir of an awful season. It’s hard to look past it and see much of the positives, but he did pick up two key passes and almost made up for the miss when he hit a vicious shot from a tight angle that Ugurcan Çakir managed to divert away with one hand. Still, when you think of what might’ve been in this game, you’re going to think of him.
VASILIJE ADZIC – 5. It was a surprise to see that he had two key passes, because he looked pretty anonymous for most of the match.
FABIO MIRETTI – 5.5. Made a pair of dribbles, but couldn’t match Yildiz’s output after he went on.
LOÏS OPENDA – NR. Only touched the ball three times in 12 minutes on the field.
FILIP KOSTIC – NR. Two of his six pass attempts were key passes. It’s worth wondering what his shot on the rebound from Zhegrova’s hit might’ve done had he not lost his footing as he hit it.
MANAGER ANALYSIS
After a game and a half of a team that looked lost mentally, Spalletti worked some magic in the short interval between the loss to Como and this game. Back was the never-say-die mentality, the pressing, and the determination to win every duel.
Choosing McKennie to play at left-back for the suspended Cambiaso and Cabal was an interesting choice, but an inspired one. He played far better there in the tie than either of the other two, once again proving his incredible versatility. The 4-3-3 setup that seems to have unleashed Koopmeiners to a degree is an interesting discovery, and he can plug the USMNT star anywhere in it.
This 4-3-3 is worth using again, especially against Roma. If David is right with his passing, he can make the wingers and any midfield runners quite dangerous indeed. The one problem is that the wings do seem to hug the sidelines a bit too much in this setup.
Spalletti needs to keep this level of play up for the rest of the year now that the season boils down to the chase for the top four. If he does, it wouldn’t be surprising if they manage to grab a spot after all.
LOOKING AHEAD
A hugely important game comes on Sunday, when Juventus travel to face Roma in a top-four six-pointer. After that, Juve get a bit of a rest from high-profile matches, coming home to play Como.
