A goal from the Uruguayan Zalayeta in the
26th minute of extra time, allowed Juventus to continue their Champions
League adventure, while Real Madrid's quest ends with the round of
sixteen.
After six minutes, the Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic tested the
skills of the opposing goalkeeper, Casillas. A cross from Emerson ended
up at the Scandinavian, who had his strike blocked by the goalie while
Madrid claimed a free kick for handling.
The Uruguayan Zalayeta had a chance to open the score for the Italians
in the 14th minute, but his strike went just past and over the left post.
Just like in the first leg, at Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid, the two
European giants had a difficult time finding each other's goal. Most
chances came from distance strikes, but neither goalkeeper was defeated
in the first half.
Real Madrid were fortunate in the 37th minute, when a strike from
Pessotto was blocked by a defender, after which the ball was immediately
cleared by 'Los Galacticos'.
The Spaniards' best chance of the match came after 40 minutes. A pass
from Figo was received by Ronaldo, who entered the Italian penalty area
and struck the ball just past the right post, with Buffon beaten.
Just after the hour mark, in the second half, Mauro Camoranesi gave the
Spanish defense a scare, but his strike, heading for the bottom corner
of the goal, was blocked by the Argentinian defender Walter Samuel.
In the 75th minute, the Italians finally broke the deadlock and
equalized on aggregate. With a bit of luck, a cross from Camoranesi was
headed towards Trezeguet by Ibrahimovic, and the French substitute put
the ball past Casillas to take some pressure of Juve's shoulder.
Not long before the final whistle Ronaldo had a chance to finish things
for the Spanish side, but the Brazilian was ruled offside by the German
referee Markus Merk.
With a score of 1-1 on aggregate, the two teams continued their battle
in extra time. After five minutes, Madrid coach Luxemburgo replaced his
striker Raúl with the English forward Michael Owen.
Zalayeta almost scored in the 6th minute of extra time, heading just
past the left post following a free kick from Roberto Carlos. The next
chance was for Camoranesi in the 9th minute, but his distance shot went
a meter of two past the right post.
A foul from Walter Samuel in the 11th minute had a free kick as result,
just outside the penalty area. Camoranesi was the one to take the
set-piece, but his right-footed strike went over Casillas' crossbar.
In the 20th minute, a clash between Ronaldo and Tacchinardi had as
result that both were expulsed. The Italian elbowed Ronaldo, who then
retaliated with a kick, which left Merk with no other choice.
With four minutes left to go, the match seemed to have been decided as
Zalayeta struck home without mercy from a distance of about 18 meters,
giving Juventus a 2-0 lead, enough for the team from Turin to advance to
the next round, leaving the nine-times European champions Real Madrid
eliminated. |
