UEFA Champions League| Juventus vs Ajax: Three reasons Juventus might be eliminated at Turin

The first leg at the Johan Cruyff arena is done and dusted and what a game it was. Ajax fell back at the stroke of half-time due to Cristiano Ronaldo's header. They did not waste any time responding though, striking back just after the restart through David Neres. It is not over yet as we await a stellar second leg in six days' time.

The first leg was an amazing end to end affair with both sides yielding a goal each. The Bianconeri have a crucial away goal in their bag though. It is yet to be seen if Juventus would park the bus at home or go for more goals to secure the tie. Whatever the gameplan, here are three reasons why we think that they are going out.

#3 No resistance on the defensive end against a rampant Ajax

Neres wasn't even under pressure when he scored the goal right after half-time

19 shots. Nine-teen shots. Billed in as one of the strongest defenses in Europe, Juventus weren't even close to average at Johan Cruyff Arena. Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci, Joao Cancelo, Alex Sandro, all big names on the back end of the pitch, yet no resistance from them.

Ajax had Juventus at the ropes on many occasions. The Bianconeri should be thanking their keeper Wojciech Szczesny for his crucial saves. David Neres' goal was also a result of a very complacent defending. He just rammed through the defense and he had time and space to shoot and finish. It is astounding to see Juventus's defense being taken apart like that by youngsters. But more than the complacency, it is helplessness on Juventus' part.

They could do much better at the defensive end but Ajax is not giving them a choice. The youngsters are not standing on ceremony, and they won't be at Turin. Genoa put two goals past Juve recently, Parma has put three past them, Ajax could have put five past them at Amsterdam. Juventus could advance on away goals in case of a 0-0 draw but that ain't happening. Ajax will break through, they have the mettle to do it, but Juve doesn't have what it takes to defend for 90 minutes.

#2 Lack of proper gameplan and midfield superiority

Does Max Allegri really look a man with a plan? What was his plan against Ajax? Was he trying to keep the score at 1-1 on purpose? Or was he trying to get the second goal and almost seal the tie at Amsterdam? We don't know. We don't know what Juventus' intentions were in the away leg and if they are satisfied by it. From Juventus' antics on the pitch, it seemed that they didn't have a gameplan. If somehow they did have a plan and they were coaxed by Ajax to not stick to it, then there is no hope left for the Bianconeri.

For the majority of the game, Juventus' plan was to go with the flow of the game, i.e. let Ajax do what they try and act according to it. If you think it was a one-off, then you are wrong. At Atleti's home, Juve lacked gameplan. When they came back home, did they have one? They crossed into the box and prayed that Ronaldo gets his head to it. If Atleti kept things strong at the back, which they didn't, the result would have been different. To be blunt, Juve progressed mostly due to Ronaldo's individual brilliance, and the remaining credit should be going to his team, but it tilts to Atleti's attitude to the game. Had Atleti been solid defensively, who other than Ronaldo and Bernardeschi was imposing?

Talking about midfield. Does Juventus even have a midfield? It looks completely dead and the players have no connection with the forward line. There is no bridging the gap between defense and attack. Bentancur and Matuidi had 44 combined passes. Including Pjanic they had 77 combined passes. Is this how a midfield operates? At least pass amongst yourself, at least pass backward, sideways, anyway, this would have slowed Ajax's tempo down. But this midfield just helped their defense out and hoped to get the ball forward on the counter.

It is a clear lack of gameplan and maybe that is halting the midfield's progression too. It happened at the Wanda. Apparently, get the ball to Ronaldo was the only aim from Juve, which paid off. But teams like Tottenham are leading going into the second leg with a lead, and they have their coach and midfield to thank for it and not Harry Kane.

#1 Overdependency on Cristiano Ronaldo

Ajax v Juventus - UEFA Champions League Quarter Final: First Leg

Juventus are different this season than they were last season. They are a better team with Ronaldo because he gives them goals but they are a worse team without him than they were last season. Juventus 2017-18 was much stronger than Juventus 2018-19 minus Ronaldo. They knew how to win. They knew how to take it to the opponents. They made Real Madrid run ragged at Santiago Bernabeu as the Los Blancos barely escaped their clutches. They came back from a goal down to eliminate Tottenham.

That team had the hunger to prove themselves. They supported each other and everyone shared the load equally. Now that Cristiano Ronaldo is in the team, the others are taking it for granted it seems. People might say, well, Bernardeschi was good but he got overshadowed by CR7. Yes, he got overshadowed but if he is that good then where was he against Ajax? Where was he against Empoli and AC Milan? For that matter, where were the others against Ajax? If Ronaldo is in the team and is not playing well, Juventus struggles. They can manage with him or if he is not in the squad at all. Without him, they are more cautious and thus they manage well. With him, they let their guards down and just cross to him and pray. They cannot expect him to turn up every day. It is impossible.

He improvised well from a not-so-good cross to head the ball past Onana, luckily for Juve. They had to play him even when he wasn't at 100%. If he wasn't there, they would have been a bit more cautious about the game but surely they would struggle to break the deadlock. If their plan remains the same, predictable one. Cross to Ronaldo, fall back and defend, then good luck with that.