The clash of opposites ends in a draw. The first round between the Ajax cicada and the Juve ant ends with a no contest which postpones everything until next Tuesday, when one of the two will go to the semifinals and the other will inevitably be eliminated at home. That of Turin will therefore be a showdown between two very different, yet both effective philosophies, as indeed we have already seen yesterday evening. Of course, the 1-1 final shifts the balance of qualification even more towards Juve, also by virtue of the greater number of champions present in the squad, provided however that one does not make the mistakes of Real Madrid, literally devastated by the mix of audacity and quality of Ajax, whose baby phenomena, not surprisingly, are besieged by top clubs across Europe.
One of these, for example, is loved by the black and whites, who have identified him as the right man to strengthen (and rejuvenate) the defense: Matthijs De Ligt convinced yesterday too and Paratici's words before the match ("tonight he plays with them, next year I don't know”) light up more than one beacon on the negotiation. But the present concerns the quarter-finals and those are still in the balance: the 1-1 draw at the Cruijff Arena gives the Lady a slight advantage but it's too little to think she's already cleared the obstacle. Also because Ajax showed that they didn't arrive here by chance and that they can play it with good chances, albeit with the usual limitations of a school that has always been studied and admired, yet, proportionally, much less successful than ours.
The Dutch certainly don't improvise anything: ball possession, high pressing, tight triangulations and a lot, a lot, pace make up an enjoyable and effective score, at least until the first mistake. Either because of the enormous expenditure of energy that such football requires, or because of their young age, Ajax always ends up conceding something and here Allegri enters the field, one of the best in the world (if not the best) at playing about the faults of others, especially if they are repeated.
And so, after making the Arena tremble with Bernardeschi, Juve took the lead at the end of the first half with the usual Ronaldo, very good at starting the action in midfield by serving Cancelo and even more at finalizing it after a kissing cross from the compatriot (45'). To be appreciated, more than the header with an almost certain blow, the dash of 30 and more meters that literally cut Ten Hag's defense in two, very good at keeping the line high and starting the actions, much less at reading the movements in the spaces of the opponents. Juve therefore went into the interval leading by a goal despite the suffering of the first half hour, in which the Dutch came close to scoring on at least two occasions, one with Ziyech (excellent Szczesny), the other with Van de Beek .
Too much grace and in fact the God of football immediately returned the favor at the start of the second half: a bad ball lost by Cancelo and a big right foot from Neres to leave the Juventus goalkeeper stunned and make the Arena explode with joy (46'). At that point Ajax, galvanized by the draw, raised the pace further and Juve spent 20-25 complicated minutes, however showing themselves to be infinitely more solid than Real Madrid, especially in times of storm: beyond the numerous potential thrills there were significant moments of heeling. And when Allegri, aware of the excessive (and dangerous) entrenchment of his team, first introduced Douglas Costa and then Dybala in place of the dull Mandzukic and the bruised Matuidi (muscle problems), the team began to breathe and raise the center of gravity , thus messing up the Ten Hag script again.
In the 85th minute the Brazilian full-back, returning after more than a two-month break, invented one of his escapes and came close to scoring the opening goal (sensational post), three minutes later and Cancelo, who can be reviewed in the defensive phase but always dangerous from the waist up, he did the same with a cross shot that risked mocking Onana. Once again, it is fair to admit, it would have been too much, but it is certain that football has very precise rules and the main one, ça va sans dire, involves putting the ball in the back of the net: Juve, chances in hand, there is maybe closer than Ajax.
“When a team reaches the quarter-finals like them, it means they have important qualities – commented Allegri in the press room – We had to make better use of the balls won, extend the game further, then in the second half we conceded goals and they earned trust. After a moment of shock, however, the team regrouped and had favorable situations. Ronaldo? He has proven to be of another category ”.
“We played very well, created many opportunities but only scored one goal – Ten Hag's analysis – We tried to win in the second half and we were courageous, we are positive for next week. We will need even more aggressiveness but we have confidence in view of the semi-finals". Everything postponed until Tuesday, in the hope that it will only be the show on the field that will repeat itself, certainly not that of the pre-game. The scuffles between the Dutch and the police and the arrest of 120 Juventus ultras (found in possession, Salvini dixit, of "objects not exactly appropriate for attending a match" and released, with a release document, in the evening), in fact, is a something we certainly didn't feel the need for…
