Here’s what happened on Tuesday in the UEFA Champions League, in case you missed it…
The results
• Watch match highlights: Manchester City 1, FC Barcelona 2 || Juventus 2, Borussia Dortmund 1
• Read match reports: Suarez solid as Barcelona beats Man City || Pirlo hurt as Juve tops Dortmund
The main talking points
The “old” Luis Suarez: Luis Suarez marked his return to England with one of his best performances since leaving Liverpool, netting twice in a 14-minute span to guide Barcelona to key road win over Manchester City in their opening leg. Both goals were classic Suarez: the first was lashed home after Vincent Kompany failed to deal with a simple ball played into the box from the flanks, and the second was a sliding finish off a pretty passing play.
What was especially impressive about the second goal was the way Suarez read the play as it developed in real time—he hung back inside the box as Barca built down the left flank and he then expertly dashed between Kompany and Martin Demichelis, timing his run to perfection as he met Jordi Alba’s low cross before poking it home. Remember the Suarez that was renowned for his predatory instincts during his memorable tenure at Liverpool? We saw a flash of that Suarez on this play.
In fact, this entire match marked a return of the “old Suarez,” a player who can break open a game with his goal-scoring brilliance and conjure a goal out of absolutely nothing. We’ve seen a much different Suarez at Barcelona, reduced to a secondary role behind Lionel Messi and Neymar, and deployed more as a provider by manager Luis Enrique. He’s thrived in the this new role, but it was good to see that he can still influence proceedings with what made him so famous prior to his move to the Catalan capital.
Juventus better without Pirlo: Whisper this quietly—Juventus greatly improved after Andrea Pirlo limped off with an injury in the 37th minute of Tuesday’s contest in Turin. The game was tied 1-1 at the time, but the Germans were in the ascendency, bossing the Italians with their speed and high-pressing style. Juventus had not time to linger on the ball, something Pirlo discovered to his peril in the opening minutes when Dortmund stripped him of possession and Ciro Immobile whipped a shot just over the crossbar.
Pirlo struggled as Dortmund closed him down quickly, thus denying him the time and space to spray his languid passes. Argentine Roberto Pereyra came on for Pirlo, and Juventus suddenly had more spring in their step—the Bianconeri had more pace with Pereyra, allowing them to more effectively with Dortmund’s swarming tactics.
For 90 minutes, this was a track meet featuring two teams playing at great speed and trying to catch the other out on the counter attack. One can only imagine how Pirlo—who at 35 is still a brilliant orchestrator but is unable to thrive when pressed in possession—would have withered under the pace of this contest. The extent of his injury as unknown at this time, but Juventus manager Max Allegri should give serious consideration to starting Pereyra ahead of the aging Pirlo when the two teams meet again in the second leg in Germany on March 18. Pirlo can change a game with one play but he has become a risk in the midfield more often than not—especially against teams such as Dortmund.
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Goal of the day
Save of the day
Deep into injury time and with Barcelona sitting on a 2-1 lead, Joe Hart came up big to deny Lionel Messi from the penalty spot and keep Manchester City within reach going into the second leg.
Best moment of the day
It wasn’t so much an individual moment, but rather the way Dortmund went after Juventus right from the opening kickoff in Turin. The Germans never abandoned their pressing style of play, even after going down 1-0 early in the contest.
Tweet of the day
Six pack of stats
Barcelona has conceded 200 goals in 200 Champions League games.
Carlos Tevez has scored four goals in his seven Champions League appearances this season, after he failed to score a single time in the previous 14 matches.
Sergio Aguero has scored 11 goals in his last 10 Champions League games.
Marco Reus has scored in each of his last four Champions League games (five goals in total).
Manchester City has earned three red cards in three Champions League games against Barcelona.
Alvaro Marotta has scored two Champions League goals and both have come against German opponents (Schalke and Borussia Dortmund).
Stats courtesy of Opta
He said it
“I’d give our team a very high rating. We have been better than our opponent with a first half at a very good level, but we need to win at home (in the second leg).” – Barcelona manager Luis Enrique
Burning question
3 stars
1) Carlos Tevez: The Juventus forward scored one goal, set up another, and caused Dortmund’s defence problems with his pace on the counter.
2) Luis Suarez: Bagged two first-half goals upon his return to England to give Barcelona control of the series with Manchester City.
3) Alvaro Moratta: Scored the winner for Juventus, was elegant in possession and proved to be a handful for Dortmund in the final third.
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