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[Tuesday, 01/10/2019, 20:50, Allianz Stadium, Torino, Attendance: 34,525]
Juventus (4-3-1-2) Coach: Maurizio Sarri
(GK) 1 Wojciech Szczęsny
(CB) 4 Matthijs de Ligt
(CB) 19 Leonardo Bonucci
(RB) 16 Juan Cuadrado
(LM) 14 Blaise Matuidi
(CM) 5 Miralem Pjanić
(CAM) 33 Federico Bernardeschi
(LST) 7 Cristiano Ronaldo
(RST) 21 Gonzalo Higuaín
Leverkusen (4-2-3-1) Coach: Peter Bosz
(GK) 1 Lukáš Hrádecký
Left Back: 18 Wendell
Centre Back: 5 Sven Bender
Centre Back: 4 Jonathan Tah
Right Back: 23 Mitchell Weiser
Right Defensive Midfielder: 15 Julian Baumgartlinger
Left Defensive Midfielder: 20 Charles Aránguiz
Central Attacking Midfielder: 10 Kerem Demirbay
Right Mid: 29 Kai Havertz
Left Mid: 31 Kevin Volland
Center Forward: 13 Lucas Alario
Goalkeeper: 28 Ramazan Ozcan
Centre Back: 3 Panagiotis Retsos
Centre Back: 6 Aleksandar Dragovic
Central Midfielder: 11 Nadiem Amiri
Left Winger: 22 Rakim Rex
Right Winger: 19 Moussa Diaby
[Tuesday, 01/10/2019, 20:50, Allianz Stadium, Torino, Attendance: 34,525]
"Well, there have been a lot of talks on what happened on their flight here but let me set the record straight Leverkusen is alive and well." Derek Rae commented the moment both teams walked out of the tunnel as the UEFA pre-match proceedings got underway.
It didn't take long for them for both teams to shake hands and take the official pre-match photos. Volland Leverkusen's Captain for the day shook hands with the officials and Leonardo Bonucci Juventus captain for the match. Volland won the coin toss and chose to shoot into the goal in front of the home stand just in case they needed that extra push in the second half.
Following the coin toss the Leverkusen squad didn't drop into their positions but instead stood hand in hand around the Centre circle. The Juventus players joined them on their side of the field followed by both sides bench and coaching staff standing arm in arm on the sidelines. "Fweeet" Following William Collum today's ref's whistle the entirety of the Allianz Stadium went silent.
For an entire minute in the heart of Turin and even in millions of viewers' homes and watering holes there was nothing but silence. During the silence, the broadcast showed pictures of Captain Mike Caster and Paul Wagner the pilots of flight FB869. Next was the picture of a family of 3 the Meirs who had tragically died during the crash leaving an 18-year-old son and 1-year-old daughter who hadn't been on the flight.
They were just the few who died on flight FB869 as after extensive rescue efforts from the 32 souls on board 10 had died on impact. 4 more died en route to the nearest hospital and 6 were currently in critical condition, meaning only 12 survived with minor injuries with only 2 stewardesses coming through unscathed. However, both had probably the most traumatic experience of everyone on board as they watched passengers die left and right. Their high school level first aid didn't help them in that situation and no matter what they did it wasn't enough.
"Fweeeet Fweeet Fweeeeet....Fweeet" William Collum blew his whistle 10 times in honour of the 10 confirmed deaths bringing the minute of silence to an end. Following that a wave of applause descended from the stands before the players proceeded to take their spots on the park.
"That brings an end to the sombre proceedings, but it will surely not be forgotten by the visiting players for the rest of their lives" Stewart Robson said as he watched the Leverkusen players take their seats with sombre expressions. Normally one would simply think they were focused on facing a superior side like Juve, but everyone knew better.
"It sure will, it's not every day that one comes so close to death, but for right now they must rise above and deliver a convincing performance here at the Allianz Stadium," Derek Rae commented as they watched both Ronaldo and Higuaín stand over the ball just waiting for the referee to blow his whistle. They didn't have to wait long as the moment William Collum completed his final checks, he blew his whistle signaling the start of the match prompting Higuaín to nudge the ball to Ronaldo who sent it back to his midfielders.
The Juventus midfield wasted no time asserting control. Miralem Pjanić orchestrated the play, threading passes with precision as Blaise Matuidi and Sami Khedira pushed forward, testing Leverkusen's defensive structure. The Allianz Stadium buzzed with anticipation as Juventus looked to capitalize on their early dominance.
As the game unfolded, Juventus pressed high, forcing Leverkusen into rushed clearances. Pjanić, playing the role of a deep-lying playmaker, switched the ball to Alex Sandro on the left flank. The Brazilian surged forward, skipping past Mitchell Weiser with a deft touch before delivering a dangerous cross into the box.
Jonathan Tah leapt high to clear, but the ball fell to Federico Bernardeschi lurking at the edge of the area. Bernardeschi struck it first time, his left-footed effort curling narrowly over the bar.
"That's the intent Juventus needs," Derek Rae remarked. "Bernardeschi wasn't far off there, and Leverkusen must be wary of those second balls."
Leverkusen tried to respond, with Charles Aránguiz and Julian Baumgartlinger working to disrupt Juventus's rhythm in midfield. Kai Havertz, showing flashes of brilliance, collected a quick pass from Kerem Demirbay and danced his way past Blaise Matuidi. Spotting Lucas Alario making a diagonal run, Havertz threaded a through ball that sliced the Juventus defence.
"Here comes Leverkusen! Alario's in!" shouted Rae.
But Wojciech Szczęsny was quick off his line, diving bravely to smother the ball at Alario's feet. The Polish goalkeeper rose quickly, shouting instructions to his defenders, ensuring there would be no repeat of the lapse.
Following the first 10 minutes of chaos with both teams looking for an early goal, both teams entered Juventus's Defensive possession rhythm. The Red Lions could only look to attack on the counter when they managed to stop the 2 lethal strikers. Ronaldo despite his age proved once again why he was in that conversation as his sheer presence unsettled Bender and Tah.
It was in the 17th minute following a failed Leverkusen attack when Pjanić found himself in possession of the ball in the middle of the field following Bonucci's precise slide tackle dispossessing Lucas Alario. Pjanić wasted no time rotating past Demirbay with a display of nimble footwork before unleashing a defence-splitting ball forward sending Matuidi running down the left flank.
The French midfielder wasted no time turning on the jets as he skipped past Haverts entering the final third. Baumgartlinger stepped up to meet him, but he was too late as Matuidi sent a sharp through ball into the Leverkusen box. The Red Lions fans seeing this held their breath, but their hearts dropped further upon seeing who was on the other end of the ball.
A black number 7 in yet another Iconic white jersey took control of the ball with his left foot as he held Tah off with his right hand. The most clinical finisher the modern game of football has ever birthed now barreled towards their goal. Despite Tah being on his side no one in the Allianz Stadium believed there existed a man who could stop Ronaldo from scoring in the Champions League.
Tah definitely felt the pressure at this very moment, but it was too early to risk getting sent off with a dirty tackle. He knew he had to make a decision soon or it would be too late but before he could even decide he saw Ronaldo draw his left foot back. Having no choice, he slid in front of him trying to block the shooting path, but the shot never came.
The Portugues legend didn't shoot and instead back-heeled the ball sending it zipping diagonally to the top of the box. His action left everyone stupefied not believing his actions but upon seeing who was on the end of that pass the Juventus fans rejoiced. Federico Bernardeschi took a short touch stepping into the box before rifling the ball into the far corner of the goal.
Hrádecký who had been blocking the near post due to Ronaldo's threat, could not react in time as he watched the ball skip past Bender's outstretched leg piercing the back of the net. "Yeahhhhh," The home fans exclaimed instantly drowning any other conversation as their players proceeded with their celebrations.