Ajax midfielder Donny van de Beek celebrates with teammates as Juventus defender Alex Sandro walks past at the end of their Uefa Champions League quarter-final second leg match in Turin April 16, 2019. — AFP pic
But those dreams were left in tatters after Juventus were beaten 2-1 at home in their quarter-final second leg yesterday, going out 3-2 on aggregate. Playmaker Paulo Dybala, in particular, seems to have been inhibited by Ronaldo’s presence and the Argentine’s season took another frustrating turn yesterday when he was taken off at halftime with a thigh injury.
“It’s better to have as many options as possible, because these ties are decided by details, substitutions and options off the bench,” he said. Of that, around €100 million was on Ronaldo, €40 million each on Joao Cancelo and Costa, €35 million euros on bringing Leonardo Bonucci back from AC Milan and €12 million on reserve goalkeeper Mattia Perin.
But, rather like Paris St Germain in France, Juve’s dominance of Serie A appeared to leave them unprepared for the European challenge.