UEFA Champions League | Juventus 0 – Real Madrid 3

Juventus made it to this round after a hard fought battle with Tottenham Hotspur. On the other hand, Real Madrid found it easier than expected to see off Paris Saint Germain.

Allegri had a bigger headache than Zinedine Zidane in choosing his starting eleven as Medhi Benatia and Miralem Pjanic were suspended. In addition, Fernando Bernardeschi was also ruled out since he is still suffering from an injury. On the contrary, Zidane had a longer squad to choose from.

Both sides came into this match in a good form. Real Madrid secured wins in their previous five encounters, while Juventus secured four victories and a draw.

Real Madrid made a dream start to the match as they went ahead after just three minutes. Isco sent a cross from the left that was met by Cristiano Ronaldo who finished past Buffon.

As time went by, Juventus saw more of the ball and managed to hit back on the 22nd minute. From a free-kick, Paulo Dybala delivered the ball towards Gonzalo Higuain whose close range effort forced a great save from Keylor Navas.

The Italian giants created another chance on the 33rd minute. Dybala tried to make contact with Mattia De Sciglio’s effort from distance; however, the Argentine was slightly late as the ball went out for a goal-kick.

Real Madrid nearly scored again two minutes later. Toni Kroos fired a thumping strike from distance that stamped off the upright.

Five minutes later, Juventus had another opportunity to equalise. Following a corner, the ball fell nicely for Barzagli, but his effort was cleared by Real Madrid’s defence.

The Bianconeri protested for a penalty on the 44th minute when Dybala went down following a challenge by Casemiro. The referee thought otherwise and cautioned the Juventus striker for simulation.

Real threatened Juventus once more five minutes into the second half. Ronaldo received the ball from Benzema and fired a shot that failed to hit the target.

The holders increased their advantage on the 63rd minute. Following a misunderstanding between Chiellini and Buffon, Lucas Vazques saw his shot being saved by Buffon. The ball fell for Real Madrid's players again, as Carvajal sent a cross towards Ronaldo whose stunning effort went inside the net.

Things went from bad to worse for Juventus on the 66th minute when Dybala was sent off after being shown his second yellow card.

Real Madrid kept on dominating and sealed the issue on the 72nd minute. Ronaldo played a one two with Marcelo and the latter flicked the ball behind Buffon.

Ronaldo spent the final stages of the match looking for a hat-trick and went close on a number of occasions.

On the 85th minute, the Portuguese star went past Barzagli on the left but finished over.

Three minutes later, Ronaldo layed the ball towards Kovacic and the substitute saw his effort hitting the woodwork.

One minute from time, Ronaldo hit a shot from inside the penalty area that was parried by Buffon.

Ronaldo went close to score again inside the stoppage time. Vazquez’s cross went into the path of the thirty-three year old who smashed the ball over.

Seconds later Juan Cuadrado could have pulled one back for Juventus. The Colombian player was served by Higuain, but finished wide from an ideal position.

Following this result, Juventus suffered their first defeat in Europe after twenty-seven matches. Their last defeat in Turin was agains Bayern Munich back in 2013.

Juventus starting line-up: Gianluigi Buffon, Mattia De Sciglio, Giorgio Chiellini, Sami Khedira, Gonzalo Higuain, Paulo Dybala, Douglas Costa, Alex Sandro, Andrea Barzagli, Kwadwo Asamoah, Rodrigo Bentancur

Real Madrid starting line-up: Keylor Navas, Dani Carvajal, Sergio Ramos, Raphael Varane, Cristiano Ronaldo, Toni Kroos, Karim Benzema, Luka Modric, Marcelo, Casemiro, Isco

Referee: Cuneyt Cakir (Turkey)

Assistant Referees: Bahattin Duran, Tarik Ongun

Additional Assistant Referees: Huseyin Gocek, Baris Simsek

Fourth Official: Mustafa Eyisoy