Juventus held by determined Mönchengladbach
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
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Juventus 0-0 Borussia Mönchengladbach
The visitors earned their first UEFA Champions League point, which was enough for last season's runners-up to stay top of Group D.
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- Juventus stay top of Group D despite being held at home by Borussia Mönchengladbach
- Not a single shot on target from either side in tight first half
- Álvaro Morata unable to score for sixth consecutive UEFA Champions League outing
- Mönchengladbach claim first UEFA Champions League point
- The teams meet again at Borussia-Park on 3 November
Borussia Mönchengladbach secured their first UEFA Champions League point by holding last season's runners-up Juventus to a goalless Group D draw in Turin.
Juventus struggled to create genuine scoring opportunities in the early stages with the visitors closing down all available spaces – especially down the flanks – and looking dangerous on the counterattack. Juan Cuadrado tried his luck from distance with a powerful shot that flashed just over.
Alex Sandro, preferred to Patrice Evra at left-back, delivered several menacing crosses but Mönchengladbach centre-backs Álvaro Domínguez and Andreas Christensen were always fully focused in shackling the Juve strikers.
Bianconeri boss Massimiliano Allegri had asked Paul Pogba to raise his game and the midfielder responded by going close with a powerful effort from the edge of the box. Álvaro Morata, trying to score for the sixth consecutive UEFA Champions League match to beat Alessandro Del Piero's Juve record, also put power into a shot from a good position soon afterwards, but the attempt lacked precision.
Pogba tested Yann Sommer from distance early in the second half as Juve tried to raise the pressure. The 19-year-old Christensen then made a crucial block on Morata in the area after a fine pass by Pogba, who then had a free-kick well kept out by Sommer.
Allegri tried to change things with Roberto Pereyra, Simone Zaza and Paulo Dybala all introduced, but Mönchengladbach continued to defend well and held out for a good point.
Key player: Paul Pogba
"He's going through a period where he needs to find himself again," Allegri said of the French international on the eve of this game. The 22-year-old responded with a very good display, and even if he made a few mistakes he was Juventus's most dangerous performer with his shots and passes.
Juve lacking accuracy
Juventus had 21 shots to the visitors' six, but only two of them were on target. The German side defended extremely well – especially 19-year-old centre-back Andreas Christensen – and never afforded the Bianconeri easy shots. Even so, the Italian champions are still short of the cutting edge they showed last term.
Can Mönchengladbach still do it?
After starting the Bundesliga season with five straight defeats, Mönchengladbach have won four in a row in their league. Now they earned their first point in Group D – and most of all confirmed that their crisis is definitely over with this solid showing. With two of their remaining three fixtures at home, they can still have a big say in this tough section.