Barcelona manager Luis Enrique claims that the club lost out to Juventus in the Champions League quarter-finals only in the first half of the first leg.
The club suffered a mammoth 3-0 defeat in the first leg at the Juventus stadium. Even though the club were confident about overturning this huge deficit – just like they did against Paris St Germain in the previous round, they were unable to make any impact in the second leg at the Camp Nou. Barcelona clearly had left themselves with too much to do in the second leg. Enrique says that he is feeling a lot of regrets about the first half at the Juventus stadium.
Paulo Dybala scored twice in the space of 15 first half minutes in order to give Juventus a commanding 2-0 lead, which was then built upon by Giorgio Chiellini’s goal in the 55th minute. This huge lead allowed Juventus to play a defensive style of football in the second leg.
They managed to secure a 0-0 draw at the Camp Nou. This result saw the club progress into the semifinals of the Champions League with the 3-0 win on aggregate. Barcelona have also have had a huge setback in the domestic competitions after losing 2-0 against Malaga. The club are three points behind Real Madrid, who have played a game less.
“I will remember what happened in the first half in the Juventus Stadium for a very long time. Our participation in this tournament this season has been unforgettable but we had a very poor first half in Turin and that has cost us dear.We tried with all our might, but we couldn’t find the route to goal. We played a very poor first half in Turin and that has cost us dearly,” said Enrique, who will now have to focus on the El Clasico.