While it wasn't a match for the ages, the roar from the Madrid's home stadium was familiar. Having been absent for some time, Jude Bellingham once again stood before the home supporters with his arms wide open, basking in the fans' rendition of Hey Jude. Following a shoulder injury and uncertainty about his role, he scored his first goal of the season, ultimately securing a 1-0 victory for Real Madrid over a Juventus side that put up a fight. “We had to sweat for it,” commented the Belgian goalkeeper.
Key Saves Secure the Victory
Courtois understood better than anyone, having to save a clear chance from Dušan Vlahović and produce another crucial save from the French midfielder in the dying moments. The win leaves Madrid on a strong tally and Igor Tudor’s team outside the qualifying spots. At the end of a game with plenty of attempts but little elegance, the Juventus manager may consider a decent start, with those opportunities representing a wasted moment around the closing stages; their current situation however makes for concerning reading.
“A side from Italy in trouble is twice as dangerous,” the Madrid coach had remarked beforehand.
Juventus, who were without a victory since September, posed Madrid issues at the start and again near the conclusion. Madrid commanded the ball, 66%-34%, but Juventus threatened on the break, especially with Pierre Kalulu running and Vlahović combining, managing a dozen attempts compared to the hosts' 27.
Promising Start for Away Side
The visitors began brightly, certainly. After just three minutes, they believed they were ahead, the forward somewhat unfortunate to be penalized for pulling the Brazilian defender. Three minutes later, Raúl Asencio had to slide ahead of Vlahović when the wing-back dashed clear on the right. And soon after, the American midfielder's effort was pushed past the post.
What followed, from Federico Gatti's powerful strike, was a even better stop. A quarter of an hour had passed. That said, quickly the Italians' momentum had faded as well. Madrid assumed command. Mostly it was all a bit functional, though, and the three best opportunities came to Aurélien Tchouaméni, who wouldn’t be the coach's preferred forward. A couple were off target, a third one took a deflection; another chance with the head was missed by the center-back.
Guler Shines
The best moments came from Arda Güler. The Turk, whose football was the nearest thing there was to smooth attacking, was constantly in the action. His neat stop and turn saw him clip to the far post for the Englishman.
There was not much sign of the French superstar early on, but when he did appear it was the closest Madrid came to scoring. Initially his attempt was stopped by Michele Di Gregorio, who would produce eight saves. Next some exquisite dribbling saw him evade Andrea Cambiaso twice until he tumbled to the turf and set up his teammate to fire over.
Second-Half Drama
The Brazilian dived to halt Kalulu at the start of the second period, and then came the customary save from the keeper when unexpectedly the attacker was through. The “inadvertent pass” had been remarkable, with Lloyd Kelly cutting out a pass inside his own penalty box and the ball bouncing from the inside of his foot right through the middle to beyond the center circle. Racing after it, huge space appearing, Vlahović raced his marker, using his strength and advancing into the area where the keeper saved.
Then what tends to happen happened, the save compensated for by the score that follows it. A burst from Vinícius Júnior created it, creating enough space amid multiple defenders to release a driven effort which struck the upright. Lurking in that striker’s role was Bellingham. The breakthrough found, Madrid ought to have sealed the game, Mbappé stopped by the keeper and Fede Valverde seeing his volley blocked by the defender. Subsequently Di Gregorio made a brilliant double stop from the forward and the attacking midfielder.
It was not the only one: as the game was drawing to a close, Raúl Asencio had to make a stunning sliding block as Madrid were exposed and at the mercy of the substitute momentarily alone in the penalty box. Then in the final seconds the Madrid keeper flew in to deny the midfielder, his work done. For the visitors, there was no route to a comeback, the opening goal of the campaign the last of the match.
“It’s a great feeling, a long time now since I’ve scored, a period out and dreaming of that moment, back in the elite competition and against a big team. To score a winner, in our stadium, it’s incredible. I felt comfortable, really good. To play well was crucial and to score the winning goal helps the team a lot.”
Regarding his form, he added: “It wasn't that last year was a disaster, with fifteen strikes, fourteen setups, but I understand the perception was that it was poorer. But I was a contributor to that, how we underperformed last year, there were still positive spells but not the level I want to play at, not the caliber like the first year. Now I’ve had my operation, a different coach, he’s got that shape, how we intend to play…. You have to learn from it.”