Champions League 2018/19, Atletico Madrid 2-0 Juventus: 5 Hits and Flops
It was epitome conditions for Atletico Madrid to play and it was hell for Juventus players to manage in that incredible unrelenting atmosphere at Wanda Metropolitano for the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16. Players quality did play a huge part in their 2-0 victory, but the crowd acted like a twelfth man to push their home players to another level and motivate them.
It was a pretty even-steven first half and both the sides had one or two moments which was not taken by their forwards. However, it totally became the vice versa when Atletico Madrid were so hungry to overcome Massimilano Allegri's side in the second part of the game.
Diego Costa missed a sitter in the opening seconds of the second half, followed by an excellent reaction save from Wojciech Szczesny to keep Antoine Griezmann in check to not allow Atletico to break the deadlock.
Alvaro Morata came on and he thought that he made an instant impact when he scored a fabulous header from close range to give the lead, but the decision was overturned by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) which suggested a little push from the Spaniard on Giorgio Chiellini before he took a header.
The hosts hit through a set piece situation when Jose Maria Gimenez had to tap the ball in from range to give the lead in the 78th minute. The stadium was ever more buzzing when their skipper Diego Godin scored from a tight angle to double the lead just five minutes after taking the lead in the second half. They defended very well to see out the game at the end.
There were plenty of superior individual performances from Atletico Madrid's side. In this article, we shall look at five hits and flops from this fabulous encounter.
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#1 Hit - Diego Godin
Atletico Madrid's defence was just too good for Juventus' forwards who struggled to get on front foot from the start of the game. Diego Godin, in particular, was thriving at the back and was involved in plenty of defensive work at the back.
When Cristiano Ronaldo went past Jose Maria Gimenez, Diego Godin read the situation brilliantly to close down the Portuguese forward from nicking a goal in the second half. When Alex Sandro and the rest of the Old Lady were stowing in crosses through set pieces, Godin took in charge to clear everything which was put in his way.
On the other hand, the hosts were a severe threat from corners and free kicks. They made it count for the second time when Godin scored a goal from a tight angle to take a two-goal cushion to the Allianz Stadium. This display will go down as one of the best in Godin's exemplary Atletico's career.