It may not have been a classic encounter, the roar from the Madrid's home stadium was familiar. After a long wait, Jude Bellingham once again stood before the south end with his arms outstretched, listening to the crowd's singing of his anthem. Following a shoulder injury and uncertainty about his role, he netted his opening strike of the season, ultimately securing a 1-0 victory for Real Madrid over a Juventus side that put up a fight. “It was a tough battle,” commented Thibaut Courtois.
Key Saves Secure the Win
Courtois knew better than anyone, having to save a one-on-one from Dušan Vlahović and make another decisive save from Khéphren Thuram in the final minute. The win puts Madrid on nine points and Igor Tudor’s team outside the qualifying spots. After a game with plenty of attempts but little elegance, the visiting coach may reflect on a promising opening, with those saves representing a missed chance around the closing stages; their current situation however presents concerning reading.
“An Italian team in difficulty is doubly threatening,” Xabi Alonso had warned beforehand.
Juventus, which hadn’t won since last month, did cause Madrid issues at the beginning and once more near the end. Madrid commanded possession, with a significant advantage, but Juventus threatened on the break, especially with Pierre Kalulu running and Vlahović linking up, managing a dozen attempts compared to the home side's twenty-seven.
Strong Opening for Away Side
The visitors began brightly, without a doubt. After just three minutes, they thought they were ahead, the forward somewhat unfortunate to be called for holding Éder Militão. Shortly after, Raúl Asencio had to intervene in front of Vlahović when the wing-back broke free on the right. And soon after, Weston McKennie's shot was deflected past the post.
What followed, from the defender's drive, was a more impressive stop. Fifteen minutes had passed. However, soon the visitors' impetus had dissipated as well. Madrid took control. Mostly it was all a bit functional, however, and the top chances came to Aurélien Tchouaméni, who is not the coach's preferred forward. Two were headed over, a third one deflected wide; another chance with the head was wasted by the center-back.
Guler Shines
Most creative play were provided by the young Turk. The Turk, whose football was the nearest thing there was to smooth attacking, was constantly in the action. His clever control and spin saw him deliver to the back post for Bellingham.
Little was seen of Kylian Mbappé early on, but when he did appear it was the nearest Madrid came to a goal. Initially his shot was denied by the Juventus keeper, who would produce several stops. Then some exquisite dribbling saw him turn the full-back twice until he went down to the ground and set up his teammate to fire over.
Second-Half Drama
Militão threw himself to stop the runner at the start of the second half, and then came the regulation Courtois rescue when suddenly the attacker was through. The “assist” had been quite something, with Lloyd Kelly cutting out a ball inside his own penalty box and the ball deflecting from the instep of his boot right through the middle to beyond the center circle. Racing after it, ample room appearing, the striker outpaced Militão, holding him off and heading into the area where the keeper saved.
Then what tends to happen happened, the save compensated for by the goal that follows it. A flash from Vinícius Júnior set up it, working himself enough room amid four men to unleash a driven effort which struck the post. Lurking in that striker’s role was Bellingham. With the deadlock broken, Madrid should have finished it, Mbappé denied by Di Gregorio and the Uruguayan seeing his volley blocked by the defender. Subsequently the Juventus goalkeeper made a brilliant double stop from the forward and the attacking midfielder.
There were more scares: as the game was drawing to a close, the defender had to make a stunning sliding block as Madrid were opened up and at the mercy of the substitute unmarked in the area. Then in the final seconds Courtois dived to deny the midfielder, his job complete. For Juve, there was no way back, Bellingham’s first of the season the final of the encounter.
“I'm overjoyed, a long time now since I’ve scored, a lot of time out and dreaming of that moment, returning in the Champions League and against a major opponent. To score a winner, in our stadium, it’s unbelievable. I was at ease, excellent. To perform was crucial and to score the winning goal helps the team greatly.”
As for his performance, he continued: “It wasn't that last year was a failure, still 15 goals, 14 assists, but I understand the general feeling was that it was poorer. But I was a contributor to that, how we underperformed last year, there were still good moments but not the standard I aim to play at, not the level like the first year. Now I’ve had my shoulder surgery, a different coach, he’s got that system, how we intend to play…. You have to learn from it.”
