This was not going to be the basic simple match people assumed. Juventus are not an all out attacking team and Monaco DON'T concede often. So this was a case of Juventus getting the G and not conceding.
Mission accomplished.
Not having Pogba in that midfield has obviously meant Juventus lose that impetus and dominance. So the maatch as a tussle with Monaco who are a physical team and very hard to break down. Meaning Juventus had to really dig really deep to get that point. And you could see how hard Pirlo found it, where Monaco really tried to put pressure and control that midfield.
That penalty....
To be totally honest, that penalty was outside of the box and it was way too soft to give in a match of this magnitude. And it ended up being a goal that won Juventus the match. But in a match like this, you take what you can and you roll on.
And Monaco are not exactly the most attacking team in the world. They have gotten this far by being VERY strong defensively, and just scoring the one or two g's to get through. But to now have to come out of their comfort zone and character, and knowing Morata and Carlito will be there to pick up an loose balls and punish them, makes things very dangerous for Monaco, and they will have to tread carefully and really think about how to navigate the second leg.
Juventus are in a very strong position with the goal and nothing given away. They just need to go to France and be strong at the back with the leadership of Chiellini and try and get that goal. Because if Juventus manage to score one or two goals, then we can finally see the return of Juventus back in the semi-finals of the Champions League.
HH
