Juventus face a daunting task tonight as they travel to Germany to play Bayern Munich in the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie.
A 2-2 home draw in the first leg put Pep Guardiola’s side in the driving seat, but the way the Italian champions fought their way back into contention augurs well for them.
In that February 23 showdown in Turin, Juventus trailed Bayern 0-2 following goals either side of half-time from Thomas Mueller and Arjen Robben.
However, Juve clawed their way back admirably and eventually Paulo Dybala and Stefano Sturaro were on the mark to ensure Juventus had extended their unbeaten home European record to an impressive 17 games.
Juve’s last home setback on the continent dates back to April 10, 2013 when Bayern became the first foreign team to conquer the Juventus Stadium thanks to strikes by Mario Mandzukic, now a Juve player, and Claudio Pizarro.
In last month’s first leg, Juventus did not play like true champions in the first hour. They performed below par and exuded a sense of inferiority complex.
The home players seemed waiting for the inevitable to happen as the German visitors ran the show.
This negative attitude brought to mind the Jekyll and Hyde syndrome, whereby Juventus are so defiant and strong in the Serie A yet so predictable and unconvincing in Europe at times.
Juve last beat Bayern in November 2005. On that occasion, David Trezeguet scored both goals in a 2-1 win at home in the group stage.
Tonight, Juventus face a difficult, though not impossible, task of ousting Bayern. In this regard, they need to take courage from recent history.
In the 2010/11 Champions League, Inter became only the second team to overturn a home first-leg Champions League deficit with an away goals win over Bayern in the last 16.
Milan also ousted the crack Bavarian side on their way to lifting their seventh European Cup in season 2006/07.
After a 2-2 home draw at the San Siro, Carlo Ancelotti’s men rose to the occasion and downed Bayern 2-0 on German soil thanks to two first-half strikes to advance to the semi-finals of the competition, where they knocked out Manchester United.
The Juventus players have to believe in themselves. If they repeat the same drab affair of the first hour in the first leg, they will be sent home packing for sure.
However, if Massimiliano Allegri’s men can be as clinical as they were in the latter stages of the match then they have all cards in place to book a quarter-final berth even if they do not start as favourites to advance.
Winter break impact
Bayern Munich seem to be less strong than they were in the first half of the season. The winter break took its toll on the side.
Moreover, Guardiola’s announ-cement that he will be joining Manchester City next season also left a devastating effect on the players and the club.
In autumn, Bayern were running away with the Bundesliga and their 26th title – their fourth in a row – seemed a mere formality.
At one stage, Guardiola’s men were 11 points clear of nearest rivals Borussia Dortmund.
Now, with eight games left, Bayern are just five points ahead of big rivals Dortmund.
Juventus, who lost two European Cup finals against German sides – Hamburg (0-1 in 1983) and Borussia Dortmund (1-3 in 1997) – are in a strong position to win their fifth straight Scudetto.
On May 21, they can complete their second successive domestic double if they beat Milan in the Coppa Italia final.
Juve are unbeaten in the Serie A since going down to Sassuolo 0-1 on October 28. After that upset, the Bianconeri chalked up an impressive 18 wins from 19 league games. The only exception was a goalless draw at Bologna on February 19.
Meanwhile, goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has not conceded a Serie A goal since Juve’s 2-1 win against Sampdoria on January 10 – a run of 926 minutes.
So, in next Sunday’s derby against Torino, Buffon has a great chance to break Sebastiano Rossi’s top-flight record of 929 minutes without conceding a goal when playing for Milan in season 1993/94.
Juventus have enough quality to upstage Bayern and keep their dream of a third Champions League title alive.
Indeed, it would be a pity if Juve were to be eliminated from the tournament, considering that May’s final will be played in Milan.