Victories in the Champions League for Juventus and Milan, Benfica-Bologna 0-0

Positive Champions League round for the Italians. Juventus beat Manchester City 2-0. Milan defeated Red Star 2-1. Only 0-0 for Bologna against Benfica.

Juventus – Manchester City 2-0

The best way to overcome a difficult moment and relaunch yourself in the Champions League. Juve put draws and unconvincing performances behind them and did so by beating Manchester City who sank to 22nd place in the standings, exacerbating a crisis that further complicated the already very difficult period for Guardiola and co. After a defeat and two draws, therefore, Juventus regains victory and does so against the English champions.

At the Allianz Stadium in Turin it ended 2-0 for Thiago Motta’s team who are relaunching themselves in the first phase of the Champions League. First half very lacking in emotion. A lot of will from two teams who are certainly not offering the best football possible, but little concreteness. Just two noteworthy opportunities to note in the first 45 minutes: in the 20th minute, Yildiz collected the ball on the edge of the area and took advantage of the space left by the City defenders to kick with his right foot, with the ball grazing the post to Ederson’s left. The great chance, however, fell to City’s star, Haaland: in the 39th minute, served by a masterpiece through ball from De Bruyne, the Norwegian striker entered the area surprising Thuram and Kalulu, and attempted a pass with Di Gregorio coming out but the Juventus goalkeeper denied the outgoing goal by touching with his left arm.

At the start of the second half it was Juventus who broke the deadlock: after Gatti’s turn blocked by Ederson, it was Yildiz who fueled the action with a cross from the left which found the powerful header of Vlahovic who did well to overtake Gvardiol, the goalkeeper didn’t hold back and the ball went over the goal line. A goal that ignited the challenge with continuous reversals of the front and a game that suddenly became more lively. In the 23rd minute, a great deflection into the corner by Di Gregorio who dived to prevent Gundogan’s shot from the edge of the box aimed at the top corner. Then in the half hour a completely American goal gave Juventus the final second: after a first shot from Weah which was countered, the former Lille player himself put it in the middle for the onrushing McKennie who volleyed past the Citizens’ goalkeeper. Juve wins and gets back up, City loses again, trembles and risks a sensational elimination.

Milan – Red Star 2-1

A less than brilliant Milan celebrates a heavy victory in the Champions League group stage 2-1 at home against Red Star, protagonist of an excellent performance. It was a strike from Abraham almost at the end that gave his team the three points. The first opportunity is for the hosts and arrives in the 14th minute. Morata recovers the ball in midfield and launches Leao, who beats the direct marker at speed, enters the area and goes for a shot with his left foot but Gutesa saves for a corner. Three minutes later, the Rossoneri defense skidded and dangerously left a ball in the area on which Maksimovic pounced, hitting the crossbar with his left foot with the goalkeeper beaten. In the 28th minute Fonseca was forced to introduce Chukwueze for Loftus-Cheek, victim of a muscle injury. A minute later, Morata left the field due to a physical problem. Abraham takes his place. The new substitute came close to scoring in the 32nd minute when he kicked a free kick from 25 meters just wide. The first half seemed headed towards a 0-0 draw, but in the 42nd minute Leao broke the deadlock. Fofana catches the Portuguese with a great throw from the back, the number 10 tames the ball admirably and beats Gutesa on the way out with a nice left-footed shot under the crossbar. In full recovery, Leao verticalizes for Abraham who goes for the shot in precarious balance, but the goalkeeper deflects it for a corner.

The Serbs start well and Maignan’s hands are needed to save Mimovic’s close-range right-footed shot in the corner, well unmarked by Ivanic. After an initial push from the guests, it was Abraham who snatched the possible 2-0 in the 9th minute when, a few steps from the goal, he finished with a sure shot on a defender who had previously slipped. Milan plays with fire and in the 22nd minute they concede 1-1. Musah loses a naive ball in a dangerous area and Radonjic, ex Torino, moves the ball to the left foot, launching a nice shot into the corner which becomes uncatchable for Maignan. The 7-time European champions attacked in a disorganized way, but found the winning goal in the 42nd minute. Chukwueze hits the ball in the middle, new substitute Camarda heads well, finding Gutesa ready to save on the crossbar, but on the rebound it is Abraham who is the quickest of all to score the goal. The opponents’ protests about a possible push by Gabbia shortly before the Englishman’s shot were of no avail. Red Star’s final assault does not have the desired effects and the result will never change again. Milan thus collects three fundamental points and, with two days to go, is just one point behind the top eight places in the league table which would guarantee access to the Champions League round of 16.

Benfica-Bologna 0-0

Second point of Bologna’s Champions League adventure. The Italiano’s team did not go beyond the 0-0 draw against Benfica, but played a match that lived up to the prestige and difficulty of the evening. A draw which leaves the Emilian team’s hopes of returning to the top twenty-four of the top rankings slim – but not null – while the Lusitanians consolidate their position in the qualifying zone. Not even two minutes and Benfica would find the advantage, on Di Maria’s assist for Pavlidis’ winning touch, but all in an offside position then signaled by VAR. Immediate thrill for Bologna following a bad ball exit, from which however the Italian team comes out with their heads held high, occupying the field well and trying to disturb the Portuguese’s initial approach. Fairly balanced match, with Benfica thriving on flare-ups and Bologna trying to attack on the restart. The best chance of the first half, however, will be given to Lage’s team, on the play of Carreras who, having freed himself from Beukema with a tunnel, sprints into the area and serves with a cross to Di Maria, who with his left-handed volley causes a lot of trouble for Skorupski .

Bologna seemed to withstand the pressure of an important stadium and an experienced opponent, putting them in difficulty at the start of the second half, with Dallinga worrying Trubin from a tight angle but covering his post well. But the pace seems to pick up in the second half, with Benfica becoming dangerous in the 65th minute, when a ball put into the area is misread by Skorupski, who first misses the exit but then manages to recover on the tap in an almost guaranteed shot by Pavlidis. It remains at 0-0, with Bologna almost in reserve and Benfica continuing to attack, until the final forcing, which ends with the Portuguese pushing but without any goals.