TURIN • Juventus have never before overturned a two-goal deficit at home in European competition, but then they never had Cristiano Ronaldo leading their attack.
If the aim of buying the five-time World Player of the Year for €100 million (S$153 million) was to make a difference on the biggest Champions League nights, it certainly paid off on Tuesday.
The 34-year-old got his eighth Champions League hat-trick - the joint-highest in the competition with Lionel Messi - as Juventus overturned a 2-0 first-leg deficit against Atletico Madrid with a 3-0 victory to reach the quarter-finals.
Afterwards, Ronaldo declared "that was why Juventus brought me here, to help on magical nights like this".
He said: "In the history of Juve, there was never a comeback like this. I do my job and I'm very happy.
"Atletico are a really tough team to face, but we are strong too and proved we deserved to go through.
"It was meant to be a special night and it was, not just for my goals but also for the attitude we showed. That is the sort of mentality you need to win the Champions League."
77
Champions League knockout-phase goals in 77 games1st
Player to reach 124 Champions League goals8
Joint-most Champions League hat-tricks, with Lionel Messi
While Ronaldo had carried on where he left off, plundering 19 goals in Serie A, his domestic form as the second-highest scorer in the Italian league had not translated to the European stage, with only one strike this term before the Allianz Stadium meeting.
Atletico, who had not conceded a goal in their previous four Champions League games, had packed their defence in the belief they could shut him out again.
But the LaLiga side are Ronaldo's favourite opponents - having scoring 22 goals against them in a nine-year spell with Real Madrid.
His coach Massimiliano Allegri had warned "it would have been weird for him to finish the Champions League with only one goal".
And after adding another three - his fourth treble against Atletico - to that tally, the competition's all-time top scorer with 124 goals goaded their fans, who had barracked him in the reverse game, by mimicking Diego Simeone's crotch-grabbing celebration.
The Argentinian coach, whose negative tactics backfired as they failed to muster a single shot on target, brushed off the taunting as the forward just "showing his character" before admitting his side could not handle the "best in the world".
Pundits agreed with his assessment, with former England striker Gary Lineker claiming Ronaldo, scorer of two towering headers and a late penalty, was "the best header of a ball I've seen".
Former Manchester United teammate Rio Ferdinand hailed him on BT Sport as "a living football god".
He said: "This is against an Atletico Madrid team who are renowned for having an unbelievable defence."
Former Manchester City defender Joleon Lescott added: "He's up there, athletically, he's ridiculous. He loves it, to score goals in any competition.
"Even if you're 2-0 up, you don't want to be facing this guy."
The Spanish press joined in the chorus of lamentation, with Marca questioning why Real "gave away a legend".
It added: "We just saw that Ronaldo is priceless. Letting him go was a historic error, he was worth a billion.
"Madrid should never have let a player like this escape, when he had a contract, and was one of the patrons of the four Champions League wins."
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS, THE GUARDIAN
Football: Pep Guardiola sorry to have derailed Manuel Pellegrini's final days at Man City MANCHESTER (AFP) - Pep Guardiola has apologised if the early announcement of his arrival at Manchester City in 2016 destabilised his predecessor Manuel Pellegrini's attempt to win the quadruple.
Guardiola sorry to have derailed Pellegrini's final days at City
adtest.supersport.com/football/premier-league/news/190227/Guardiola_sorry_to_have_derailed_Pellegrinis_final_days_at_City
Pep Guardiola has apologised if the early announcement of his arrival at Manchester City in 2016 destabilised his predecessor Manuel Pellegrini's attempt to win the quadruple. Pellegrini will bring his West Ham side to Manchester on Wednesday, making his first visit to the Etihad for a match since City sacked him to make space for Guardiola.
Guardiola sorry to have derailed Pellegrini's final days at City
Yuya Osako scored twice as Japan overcame a spirited Turkmenistan side 3-2 to claim three points in the AFC Asian Cup Group F opening match in Abu Dhabi. It was a brave performance by Turkmenistan
Opinion: Heavyweight Ryan Reaves-Adam McQuaid scrap a
allmysportsnews.com/nhl/opinion-heavyweight-ryan-reaves-adam-mcquaid-scrap-a-microcosm-of-nhl-fighting-debate/
Football: Osako double saves the day for Japan in 3-2 Asian Cup win over Turkmenistan »
Yuya Osako snatches shock victory for Japan in opposition to
tmssmagazine.com/yuya-osako-snatches-shock-victory-for-japan-in-opposition-to-10-man-colombia/
It is difficult to imagine a team making a more calamitous start to a game in this World Cup finals than Colombia did here and, unfortunately for José Pékerman and his players, there was another blow to come on top of being a goal and a man down inside a chaotic first six minutes.
Japan 1 - Ivory Coast 2 | Reuters.com
Neymar walked off in tears after landing awkwardly on his ankle against Strasbourg. Paris St-Germain boss Thomas Tuchel says it will be "super difficult" for Neymar to be fit for their Champions
PSG news: 'Super difficult' for Neymar to face Man Utd, says
Tampines Rovers' bench for the 2019 SPL campaign will see Kadir Yahaya support new head coach Gavin Lee. He has been described as one of the most astute local coaches in recent times and it was no wonder when Tampines Rovers decided to recruit former Singapore international Kadir Yahaya
SEA Games on Flipboard | ABS-CBN, SEA Games, Gaming
Roma 2-1 Porto: Nicolo Zaniolo hits brace as Italian side secure first leg victory in Champions League clash but Adrian Lopez scores away goal
Need To Stay Focused, Warns Coach - fijisun.com.fj
France got off to a perfect start in the women's World Cup as the hosts beat South Korea 4-0 in the opening game at the Parc des Princes on Friday. France make light work of South Korea in
France make light work of South Korea in World Cup opener
An early Mohamed Salah penalty and a late strike by Divock Origi gave Liverpool a 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur in Saturday's all-English Champions League final as their coach Juergen Klopp
Liverpool win Champions League after Salah and Origi sink
Shop our selection of Garage Heaters in the Heating, Venting & Cooling Department at The Home Depot.
Gareth Southgate praises 'electric' Raheem Sterling after hat
Manchester City celebrated their domestic treble with an open-top bus parade on Monday, drawing an estimated 100,000 fans to the streets of the city centre. (AFP pic) MANCHESTER: Manchester City
Treble winners Man City enjoy parade - sports.yahoo.com
Klopp hails departing Sturridge as 'modern-day Liverpool great' according to Reds boss Jurgen Klopp. during the 4-0 Champions League semi-final second-leg win over Barcelona, which saw
Klopp hails ´unstoppable´ Messi after Champions League brace
Football: Sevilla put pressure on Spanish La Liga leaders Barcelona by drawing level with 2-0 win over Girona
Valencia thrash Sevilla to keep pressure on Barcelona in La
footballnations.net/spain/la-liga/valencia-thrash-sevilla-to-keep-pressure-on-barcelona-in-la-liga/
Valencia striker Simone Zaza celebrates goal in win over Sevilla. Valencia moved up to within a point of leaders Barcelona in La Liga with a 4-0 thrashing of Sevilla at the Mestalla. Striker Simone Zaza scored his seventh goal in his last five league games to send Los Che four points above Real Madrid, ahead of their match on Sunday.
Villarreal vs. Real Madrid - Football Match Report - January
0 Kommentare:
Kommentar veröffentlichen