Juventus held on to draw 1-1 with Borussia Monchengladbach at the Borussia-Park on Tuesday night to put them on the verge of qualifying for the knockout stages of the Champions League.
The Bundesliga side dominated the first-half and took the lead in the 18th minute through Fabian Johnson after some poor defending from Giorgio Chiellini. However, despite struggling, Juventus got back into the match through Stephan Lichtsteiner, after Paul Pogba produced a stunning pass to set him up.
In the second-half Hernanes was sent-off, leading to the Bianconeri coming under serious pressure, however, through strong defending they were able to hold out the German side to clinch a vital point.
Borussia Monchengladbach:
Yann Sommer -7 – Decent
The Swiss goalkeeper was relatively untested in the first-half, but he kept his concentration levels high to brilliantly deny a Patrice Evra header. He couldn’t have done anything to stop Juventus’ equaliser.
Andreas Christensen -7- Wonderful
The Chelsea loanee made a crucial block in the 23rd minute when Paulo Dybala ran through on goal. He was comfortable on the ball all night and showed experience well beyond his years.
Alvaro Dominguez -7- Tough
The Spaniard, like his centre-back partner, was composed on the ball and rugged throughout. He comfortably dealt with Alvaro Morata who was nullified all night.
Havard Nordveit -7- Nice
The Arsenal academy product was playing out of position at right-back, but despite this he looked comfortable all night and he certainly dealt with the forward runs of Patrice Evra.
Oscar Wendt -5.5 – Inconsistent
Like Evra, he was found wanting positionally for the Bianconeri’s equaliser as he failed to notice the run of Stephan Lichtsteiner. However, going forward the Swede was was very positive.
Granit Xhaka -7.5- Commanding
Playing as a regista, the Borussia Monchengladbach captain was excellent all night as he dictated the play with his incisive and inventive passing.
Lars Stindl -5.5- Comfortable
Stindl was committed in his pressing all night but he lacked a presence on the ball and missed a great chance in the second-half.
Fabian Johnson -7.5- Street-wise
Energetic and always worked hard, Johnson was rewarded early on with a goal and continued to cause problems all night with his pace and clever runs.
Ibrahima Traore -6.5 – Lightning
His pace and dribbling was an issue for Patrice Evra all night, moreover he tracked Evra’s forward runs all game and helped out Nordveit who was playing out of position.
Mahmoud Dahoud – 7.5- Stupendous
Dahoud started the game in adventurous form and hit a fierce shot which hit the bar early on. For the rest of the game Dahoud was excellent as he dominated the midfield, embarrassing the likes of Hernanes and Stefan0 Sturaro.
Raffael -6.5 – Clever
The Brazilian’s movement caused Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini numerous problems all night. He also assisted Johnsons goal, but in the second-half as Juventus dropped deep he had issues.
Subs:
Thorgan Hazard –N/A-
On for just six minutes.
Juventus:
Gianluigi Buffon -6.5- Experienced
The veteran couldn’t have done anything to stop the opening goal but at times Buffon did look slightly suspect and anxious in his actions. Despite that, he made one stunning save to deny Stindl late on.
Stephan Lichtsteiner -8- Delighful
On his return to the side, Lichtsteiner produced a stunning run to get in behind the Monchengladbach defence and then score a great volley. Furthermore he was stout defensively.
Leonardo Bonucci -7- Rugged
The Italian struggled to deal with the movement of Raffael early on but improved in the second-half as The Old Lady were put under serious pressure.
Giorgio Chiellini –6.5- Improved
His poor clearance led to the opening goal for the Bundesliga side. However, his experience was crucial after Juventus went down to 10 men.
Patrice Evra –5.5- Lacklustre
The Frenchman was caught out of position in the run up to the opener, which allowed Fabian Johnson to score. He was also poor going forward.
Stefano Sturaro -5.5- Inadequate
The designated ball-winner in the Juventus side, Sturaro was rather lethargic and he struggled to get close to the likes of Xhaka and Dahoud.
Hernanes -3- Shocking
The Brazilian was extremely sluggish in the first-half and was criminally under-involved. The second-half wasn’t much better as Hernanes was sent-off for a reckless challenge on Dominguez.
Claudio Marchisio -6- Consistent
Marchisio found his influence somewhat limited as the Bundesliga side dominated possession but when he did get the ball he was efficient.
Paul Pogba -7- Flashy
Despite being rather silent in the first-half Pogba made up for his absence by producing a wonderful chipped pass to assist Lichtsteiner. In the second 45 his influence waned.
Paulo Dybala –6.5- Promising
Always eager to make stuff happen his movement and trickery, he caused problems, though he probably should have scored in the first-half. Was rather harshly substituted in the second-half.
Alvaro Morata -4- Dire
Morata was completely absent in the opening half. His hold-up play improved in the second-half but he was rightfully substituted late on.
Subs:
Juan Cuadrado -5- Studious
Worked hard but he came on when Juventus were down to 10 men so he rarely touched the ball.
Andrea Barzagli -N/A-
Defended well but on for just 10 minutes.
Madrid won’t buy back Morata when he plays like this. Sturaro is not good for this level, Evra too old and Hernanes a desperate last min signing =(
I have no idea why they spent 11m on Hernanes – an Inter reserve. He’s an ok player but nothing more. Instead of spending 50m on him, Mandzukic and Zaza, they could have gotten 2 top players instead.