Disaster in Lisbon! Juventus crash out at Champions League group stage despite late rally against Benfica
- Juventus crash out of UCL group stage
- Benfica cruised to 4-1 victory with 15 mins left
- Iling-Junior inspired late rally not enough
WHAT HAPPENED? A late rally inspired by substitute Samuel Iling-Junior was insufficient as Max Allegri's side crashed to a 4-3 defeat to Benfica at the Stadio Da Luz. Goals from Antonio Silva, Joao Mario and a brace from Rafa Silva had put the home side in the clear with 15 minutes to go, but late strikes from Arkadiusz Milik and Weston McKennie narrowed the deficit to 4-3. Despite a nervy end to the game, Benfica held on to the victory to secure qualification.
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Juventus went into Tuesday night's match needing a win to be in with a mathematical chance of qualification from Group H. However, defeat eliminated the Vecchia Signora from the group stage of the competition for the first time since the 2013/14 season. Allegri's side's tepid performance in Lisbon, aside from a floury late on, caps off an underwhelming start to 2022/23. Juve sit eighth in Serie A, ten points off leaders Napoli with just eleven matches played.
ALL EYES ON: Despite an impressive display off the bench from Iling-Junior, the night in truth belonged to Benfica's Rafa Silva. The Portugal international scored his side's third and fourth goals, as Benfica looked set to pull away from their Group H opponents. Top European clubs will likely be after him in January.
MATCH IN THREE PHOTOS:
.jpg?auto=webp&format=jpg&quality=60&width=1400)
DID YOU KNOW? Juventus conceded three goals during the first half of a match for the first time in the club's Champions League history.
THE VERDICT:
This sums up Juventus' performance up to 75 minutes:
Juventus shockingly humiliated once again this season. Incredibly, this has become a pattern.
— Matteo Bonetti (@Bonetti) October 25, 2022
Something has to change. Enough is enough https://t.co/blRdGukLts
There was a game-changing moment in Juve's attempted comeback:
Mckennie!!!!! It’s 4-3 and Juventus have decided to play.
— Mina Rzouki (@Minarzouki) October 25, 2022
Thank you Iling Junior again for the abundance of quality he had brought to this side
Ultimately, however, the night truly belonged to this man:
🇵🇹 Rafa Silva x2⃣#UCL pic.twitter.com/KobsRAxUv5
— Liga de Campeones (@LigadeCampeones) October 25, 2022
The irony behind Juve's recent poor record in the tournament:
Juventus knocked out of the Champions League in 5 successive seasons by Ajax, Lyon, Porto, Villarreal & Benfica. Five clubs not deemed "glamorous" enough for the European Super League by one of its key cheerleaders - Juve chairman Andrea Agnelli. Sometimes football can be funny.
— Colin Millar (@Millar_Colin) October 25, 2022
WHAT NEXT FOR JUVENTUS? After attempting to make up ground in Serie A against Lecce on Saturday, Juventus will need a win against visitors PSG on November 2 to ensure Europa League qualification.