Juventus 1-0 AS Monaco - 5 talking points

Italian champions Juventus drew first blood in their quarter-final of the Champions League as they prevailed over a sturdy Monaco side courtesy of Arturo Vidal’s well-taken penalty in the second half.Having caused a major upset by ousting Arsenal in the previous round, the French outfit came to Turin high on confidence and also gave the Bianconeri a tough time for most part of the game.The home blew away some gilt-edged chances in the first half that would have put them comfortably in front and for all their efforts, were awarded a penalty when Alvaro Morata was fouled by Ricardo Carvalho in the box midway through the second half.Vidal stepped up and slotted the ball home coolly to score the winning goal and Juventus now take a slender advantage to France next week. Here are the 5 talking points from the game:

#1 Are Juventus losing their spark?

The runaway Serie A champs have been steamrolling their opponents all season and are on course for their first ever treble. They are 12 points clear at the top in the league, play Lazio in the finals of Coppa Italia and are the lone Italian representatives remaining in the Champions League. It was all plain sailing for Allegri’s men until the insolvent Parma stuck their oar in.

The Old Lady were stunned by the minnows last weekend, when they went down 1-0, creating shockwaves across the country. Parma, amidst all their financial fiasco, showed grit and determination and sent out a message that they still have life in them when they pegged back the holders for most of the game and also came up with a winner.

Juventus struggled to make their mark and ultimately paid for their mediocrity. The game against Monaco was similar to that.

The home side although enjoyed the lion’s share of possession, were seen struggling to hold sway over the visitors and whatever chances they created, they failed to convert them due to some profligate finishing.

Despite having a fully fit squad, Juventus were nowhere near their best. Even the return of Andrea Pirlo did little to inspire Le Zebre and they ground out a win only due to the penalty. They have now gone 2 games without a goal from the open play and their back-to-back substandard showings indicate that the Turin outfit may be losing their spark.