Juventus 1-0 Atletico Madrid: 3 Reasons Why the Bianconeri won

Juventus scraped past Atletico Madrid in Turin to ensure top spot in Group D of the UEFA Champions League. The hosts started the better of the two sides and immediately controlled possession. However, they had to wait until stoppage time of the first half to make the net bulge.

In the second minute of added time, Paulo Dybala curled a sumptuous free-kick from an improbable angle to send the Allianz Stadium into raptures.

After the break, Atletico dominated proceedings and they did everything but score. Eventually though, the Old Lady just about held on for three points, meaning that the Los Rojiblancos now face a clutch fixture against Lokomotiv Moscow on match-day 6 of the UCL.

Here is a look at the three reasons that enabled Juventus to post a gritty victory.

#3 Juventus exploit the flanks in the first half

Atletico fielded a narrow four-man midfield for the trip to Turin as Koke and Saul Niguez lined up as the wide midfielders alongside Hector Herrera and Thomas Partey. Consequently, the visitors accorded the hosts an exorbitant amount of space on the wings and the latter made merry, especially in the first half.

On countless occasions, the Bianconeri pushed its full backs high up the pitch, thereby enabling the side to play with width. The ploy allowed them to stretch the pitch slightly to counter Atletico’s compact and compressed defending through the centre.

Additionally, the forward forays of the full-backs meant that several instances of numerical superiority were created, wherein the likes of Kieran Trippier and Renan Lodi were exposed defensively.

The breakthrough also came about when Juventus drew a foul on the right edge of the penalty box after some smart interplay on the flank. Dybala stepped up and whipped the ball past an unsighted Jan Oblak to hammer home Juventus’ prowess on the wings.

Before the encounter began, both sides had opted for a midfield that was primarily designed to operate through the centre of the pitch, meaning that the battle on the flanks became even more crucial.

And, ultimately, the Bianconeri’s effectiveness in the wider areas paved the way for a vital victory.

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#2 Atletico fail to maximise their second half dominance

Atletico Madrid were guilty of not making the most of their second half dominance

Over the past few weeks, Atletico have stumbled and stuttered on the domestic and continental front, meaning that they’ve lost ground at the perch of the La Liga whereas they came into the encounter against Juventus hoping to erase a 3-point deficit.

Unsurprisingly, they started the game shakily as Juventus swarmed all over them and imposed their identity on the encounter. However, after the break, the Los Rojiblancos looked a team possessed as they put the Old Lady under incessant strife.

Unfortunately, though, the Spanish outfit failed to make the most of their dominance as they weren’t successful in carving out enough clear-cut openings.

For large swathes of the second period, Atletico kept pushing and probing the Juventus defensive door. However, they couldn’t muster an adequate end product in the final third.

The Los Rojiblancos completely nullified the threat of Aaron Ramsey and Miralem Pjanic, meaning that they enjoyed the lion’s share of possession. Yet, they couldn’t get in behind the Juventus defence.

Subsequently, they tried to open the Old Lady up on the outside, thereby leading to several crosses from the wings. However, their deliveries often lacked the conviction and were largely indecisive.

And, when they did manage to scythe through Juventus in the dying moments of the game, Alvaro Morata somehow contrived to tangle his feet, in the process, failing to connect Angel Correa’s low cross, with the goal gaping.

Over the course of the 2019-20 season, an offensive end-product has been a major cause of concern for Atletico. And, their adventure in Turin, rather than acting as a source of inspiration, only made that furrowed brow even more discernible.

#1 Matthijs de Ligt leads a dogged defensive display

Over the summer, not many transfer sagas dominated the back pages as much as the one revolving around Dutch starlet Matthijs de Ligt. Eventually though, Juventus won the race for his signature, thereby teasing an enticing prospect of the Dutchman featuring in the company of Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci.

However, an untimely injury to the 35-year-old meant that the former Ajax skipper was thrown straight into the deep end, a prospect he certainly didn’t enjoy in the formative stages of his Juventus career.

The youngster endured an enormous amount of criticism with many even questioning his hefty transfer fee. However, recently, he has started racking up brilliant displays and that trajectory perhaps reached a crescendo against Atletico on Tuesday.

The Dutchman represented the most ubiquitous figure on the pitch as he was present to mop up the danger throughout the game. His game-reading was exemplary too as he rarely allowed an Atletico forward to get goal-side of him.

Most encouragingly though, his decision-making was exemplary, especially considering that facet of his game has been under the scanner recently.

On numerous occasions, he dived into challenges whereas he was also smart enough to not lunge in at other times. His exceptional performance was capped off by one moment in the final quarter of the second half.

After Joao Felix had played Correa through on goal, courtesy a delicious outside of the boot pass, de Ligt quickly sized up his man and produced an impeccably timed tackle, thereby clearing the danger and disallowing the Argentine from having a shot on goal.

Over the years, a lot of promising youngsters have wilted under the weight of astronomical expectations and for a while, it seemed that that particular aspect had been getting the better of the Dutchman as well.

Yet, with such an assured showing against one of Europe’s premier teams, de Ligt has only strengthened a reputation that had taken hits in the past few months. And, if he keeps churning out such displays, one reckons not many would be arguing over his transfer fee.