Chapter 588 Good Results from Two Games
Per usual practice, the Juventus players took a day off after winning the game against Cagliari. They spent their entire hours on Sunday resting before returning to the training ground on Monday morning.
The football season was in its late stages, and most coaches of top teams were already doing their best to reduce the intensity of the training schedules. They were trying not to burn out the energy of their players when there were still crucial tournaments, like the Champions League and their respective leagues, at stake.
Coach Allegri obviously had such considerations while designing the training for his players over the following two days. On Monday, he took them through only one hour of intensive training and discussed game tactics with them for another hour before sending them to rest for the day. He repeated the same routine on Tuesday, save for the fact that he didn't send the players back home in the afternoon.
The coach instead extended the tactical meeting and picked the line-up for the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final.
The selected players then grouped up with the coaches and technical staff in the evening. They took the team bus to the airport and boarded an evening flight to Germany, eager to play the second leg of Juventus' Champions League semi-final against Borussia Dortmund. They arrived in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia, at around eight and checked into a hotel, where they spent the night.
The coach took them through a one-hour light training session the following morning. He then discussed more tactics against Dortmund with them for two hours before sending them back to the hotel to rest for the day.
They passed the day in a relaxed mood in their respective rooms, only opting to come out for lunch at 1:00 PM and an evening snack at 6:30 PM before they set off for the match venue in their team bus. Under the guidance of the German police, they snaked their way through the streets of Dortmund before eventually arriving at the Signal Iduna Park, Borussia Dortmund's home ground, at 7:30 PM.
The pre-match proceedings moved forward quickly, and the game commenced at 8:45 PM.
Coach Max Allegri had fielded his strongest squad, save for the injured Andrea Pirlo. As such, the on-form Juventus started the game incredibly well despite being away from home.
Carlos Tevez was once again Dortmund's tormentor right from the get-go. Some brilliant midfield play by Juventus saw the Argentine striker connect with a pass from Patrice Evra deep in the opposition's half. Without hesitating, Tevez pulled the trigger from 30 yards out and beat the keeper to score Juventus' 1st goal for the night during the 3rd minute.
It was the perfect start Juventus needed as they had extended their aggregate lead to 7:1 early in the second leg of the semi-final. They decided to conserve strength and slow their tempo of play. They allowed Dortmund to play on them and dominate possession as they defended staunchly without making any mistakes.
The match proceedings moved forward in that manner. But Dortmund's control of the game was not allowing the players of the German outfit to carve out any opportunities. They even tried their best through their wing play to send crosses to Aubameyang, their center-forward. However, Juventus' disciplined defense repeatedly cleared the danger time and time again without any mishaps.
The halftime whistle eventually came with Juventus having been comfortable since their goal and Dortmund finding only half-chances from Marco Reus and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. As such, the players of the German-based team needed to improve if they hoped to avoid another embarrassing score.
However, the signs of improvement never came after the second half commenced. Yes, the Dortmund players continued dominating possession. But they were poor in the final third and continuously failed to convert their dominance into actual goal-scoring chances. They didn't have even a shot on target during the first fifteen minutes of the second half.
The game continued, and circumstances worsened for Dortmund when the Juventus players started coming out of their shells to launch counterattacks. The initiator was Arturo Vidal, who won a ground duel against Henrikh Mkhitaryan with a sliding tackle before poking the ball towards the nearby Zachary.
Zachary, on his part, didn't do anything flashy after receiving the ball. He acted as a typical midfielder and played a first-time pass towards the left flank. He unleashed a pinpoint ball toward where Carlos Tevez was lurking.
The counterattack was on, and the on-form Carlos Tevez didn't disappoint. He chested the ball to the ground and used his swift pace to beat Sokratis Papastathopoulos, the Dortmund right-back for the day. He cut into the pitch from the left flank before playing a pass to álvaro Morata, who was eagerly waiting for an opportunity close to the edge of the box.
Morata skillfully controlled the ball close to the edge of the box. He turned and twisted past Mats Hummels, the Dortmund center-back, with the ball glued to his foot. Then, when the angle opened up, he pulled the trigger and slotted the ball past the keeper to score another goal for Juventus.
The score was then 2:0 in favor of Juventus on the night, and the Juventus players must have felt they had already done enough during the semi-final. They comfortably fell back into their half and defended without mishaps until the game ended after four minutes of added time.
With that, Juventus finally emerged victorious in the UEFA Champions League semi-final. They had played a solid two legs of football and defeated Borussia Dortmund by an aggregate score of 8:1 to qualify for the finals in Berlin. They would play against Barcelona, the Spanish team that had overwhelmed Bayern Munich in the other semi-final with a 5:3 aggregate score.
The prospect of playing in the final seemed to re-energize the Juventus players and coaches. Three days later, on Saturday, May 16th, they headed into their next away Serie A fixture with boundless momentum. They showcased another incredible performance and overwhelmed Inter Milan, even while they were playing away from home.
The game didn't start in their favor as Mauro Icardi, one of the opposing center-forwards, put Inter Milan ahead during the 9th minute with a simple tap into the back of the net following a well-taken corner kick. But the Old Lady players didn't give up even after facing the early upset. They showed the character of champions and sustained pressure against the opponent until they found a breakthrough through Zachary during the 36th minute.
Zachary again showed his class and took the opportunity calmly. He converted a free-kick from a tight angle to score his 34th goal in the Serie A that season. He was steadily making firm steps towards winning his first Golden Boot in the Italian League.
The score was then 1:1, but the Juventus players didn't relax. They continued dictating play against Inter Milan through their brilliant exchanges in the middle. They dominated possession and created more and more goal-scoring chances until a foul on Fernando Llorente within the box saw them win a penalty during the 42nd minute.
Fernando Llorente stepped forward and calmly converted the penalty. He sent the keeper the wrong way and found the back of the net to score Juventus 2nd goal that evening.
The score was then 2:1 in favor of the visiting Juventus. The Inter Milan players reacted by launching endless attacks during the second half. They even came close to scoring several times, with Xherdan Shaqiri, Mateo Kovacic, and Marcelo Brozovic all getting clear opportunities to put the ball behind the back of the net during the 51st, 67th, and 73rd minutes respectively. However, the stunning saves from Marco Storari, the stand-in Juventus keeper, allowed the Turin-based team to escape unscathed on all occasions.
The game then proceeded into the late stages, with Inter Milan attacking relentlessly in search of an equalizer while Juventus calmly defended. Like most other adversaries that had already played against Juventus, the Milan-based team seemed to have forgotten that Juventus were dangerous on the counter.
Juventus soon punished them for their oversight when Marco Storari made another stunning save before rushing to the edge of the box and unleashing Zachary on a counterattack with a one-handed throw during the 86th minute.
Zachary did what he usually did best. He calmly collected the ball close to the touchline on the left flank before whirling around and sprinting towards the other side of the pitch with all the speed he could muster. He left most Inter Milan defenders in the dust and eventually cut into the field to head towards Milan's box.
At that juncture, Gary Medel, the defensive midfielder who had stayed back to defend, tried to close Zachary down. But Zachary stepped past him with a swift change of pace before continuing towards the box. He then calmly rounded the approaching keeper and put the ball into the back of the empty net to score Juventus' 3rd goal during the 86th minute.
Zachary didn't halt his run, though. He ran towards the touchline and celebrated his 35th Serie A goal in front of the traveling Juventus fans. He was really having the time of his life playing for Juventus, and he repeatedly pumped his fist again and again to vent his excitement.
After the goal celebrations, the game resumed, with the Juventus players continuing to frustrate Inter Milan with their game management tactics. They played solid defensive football and wasted time whenever they could until the referee blew the final whistle after six minutes of added time.
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