Local boy makes good. Not that they will be celebrating it in Madrid. Alvaro Morata didn't celebrate his moment of glory, either. Maybe he wants to come back here as a citizen one day.
Morata was the one they let go. The kid from the youth ranks who couldn't quite cut it among the ranks of the beautiful people. He got as far as the Champions League final, playing 10 minutes as a substitute for Karim Benzema last year, but no further. Real Madrid sold him to Juventus in the summer – and on Wednesday night he returned to admonish them in the most hurtful way possible. He knocked them out of the Champions League. At their place; 33 minutes short of the final.
There will be no El Clasico in Berlin. Juventus were worthy winners over two legs. They got a vital victory at home, and a vital goal away. Real Madrid are left ruing mistakes – like not facing up to the Iker Casillas issue a year earlier. He had two chances to stop the equalising goal. He failed both times.
Juventus striker Alvaro Morata (second from left) hits the ball into the ground to equalise for Massimiliano Allegri's side
Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas gets two hands to Morata's strike but can't keep it out as Juventus take a 3-2 aggregate lead
Morata refuses to celebrate after scoring his second goal in as many games against the club the left last summer
Juventus defenders Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini jump on Morata as Real Madrid's players react to the goal in the background
Arturo Vidal (top) and his Juventus team-mates mob Morata after his crucial strike in the Champions League semi-final second leg
Morata applauds Juventus' travelling supporters at the Bernabeu as he is taken off for Fernando Llorente in the 84th minute
The first was by punching out a high ball when he could, perhaps, have gathered. From there it was recycled, pumped in and headed across goal by Paul Pogba, putting in a heroic shift, half-fit and tiring, on his return from injury. He rose above Sergio Ramos, and the ball fell to Morata. Scorer of Juve' s first in the home leg, here was an even bigger moment – and, boy, did he rise to the occasion. He chested the ball down and struck his shot into the turf, skidding up and over Casillas, who got something on it but not enough.
There was power in the shot but it was straight at him really. One imagines David De Gea would have fancied his chances. Morata did the respectful non-celebration – how about respecting the folks who have travelled from Turin – and his team-mates clung to their draw. What should have been a historic occasion for Madrid ended in failure.
Before the game, the fans unfurled a reminder of the glorious past. A giant banner depicting the hero of those European Cup triumphs, Alfredo Di Stefano. Maybe one day they will do the same for Cristiano Ronaldo. It was Di Stefano's record he equalled, with his 307th goal for the club, scored from the penalty spot to give Madrid a first-half lead.
James Rodriguez's fall looked soft – and his image wasn't helped by the fact he was booked for diving soon after – but there was a definite foul by Giorgio Chiellini and referee Jonas Eriksson was right to point to the spot. Ronaldo stepped up, took his usual sideways step and found the roof of the net. He now has 10 goals in Champions League semi-finals, twice as many as the next highest scorer. What a player.
They love him here, of course, which is more than can be said for Gareth Bale. As Madrid chased, so Bale's desperation to rewrite his season's narrative grew. Sadly he only made it worse. He missed at least three good chances to send the tie into extra-time – first from a Marcelo cross at the near post, then with a header from a Ronaldo cross, finally with another header from a corner. At least two of the three should have gone. By the time he ran a ball out of touch on the right, the whistles had started. Some boos too. It is a long way back from here.
The first was by punching out a high ball when he could, perhaps, have gathered. From there it was recycled, pumped in and headed across goal by Paul Pogba, putting in a heroic shift, half-fit and tiring, on his return from injury. He rose above Sergio Ramos, and the ball fell to Morata. Scorer of Juve' s first in the home leg, here was an even bigger moment – and, boy, did he rise to the occasion. He chested the ball down and struck his shot into the turf, skidding up and over Casillas, who got something on it but not enough.
There was power in the shot but it was straight at him really. One imagines David De Gea would have fancied his chances. Morata did the respectful non-celebration – how about respecting the folks who have travelled from Turin – and his team-mates clung to their draw. What should have been a historic occasion for Madrid ended in failure.
Ronaldo looks frustrated as he rests against one of Buffon's posts after missing an opportunity to open the scoring early on
Before the game, the fans unfurled a reminder of the glorious past. A giant banner depicting the hero of those European Cup triumphs, Alfredo Di Stefano. Maybe one day they will do the same for Cristiano Ronaldo. It was Di Stefano's record he equalled, with his 307th goal for the club, scored from the penalty spot to give Madrid a first-half lead.
James Rodriguez's fall looked soft – and his image wasn't helped by the fact he was booked for diving soon after – but there was a definite foul by Giorgio Chiellini and referee Jonas Eriksson was right to point to the spot. Ronaldo stepped up, took his usual sideways step and found the roof of the net. He now has 10 goals in Champions League semi-finals, twice as many as the next highest scorer. What a player.
Juventus midfielder Pogba finds himself surrounded as Real Madrid pair Isco and Bale both attempt to take the ball off him
They love him here, of course, which is more than can be said for Gareth Bale. As Madrid chased, so Bale's desperation to rewrite his season's narrative grew. Sadly he only made it worse. He missed at least three good chances to send the tie into extra-time – first from a Marcelo cross at the near post, then with a header from a Ronaldo cross, finally with another header from a corner. At least two of the three should have gone. By the time he ran a ball out of touch on the right, the whistles had started. Some boos too. It is a long way back from here.
No comments:
Post a Comment