Back to the drawing board for Juventus

Thiago Motta was surprisingly subdued, and to the point, during the post-match press conference following Juve’s shock Champions League exit.
Thiago Motta's European exploits were ended by PSV Eindhoven
Thiago Motta's European exploits were ended by PSV Eindhoven | Rene Nijhuis/MB Media/GettyImages

The Juventus head coach was forced to watch in horror as his side capitulated inside the cauldron of the jam-packed Philips Stadion on Wednesday evening.

His side were eventually beaten by an extra-time goal to lose 3-1 to PSV Eindhoven on the night, and taste a disappointing 4-3 aggregate defeat

Motta’s troops had registered four wins on the spin for the first time coming into the contest. In contrast the Dutch League champions had recently hit a rocky patch.

Yet it ended up being a tie of attrition in a match of two halves, two central defenders and two forwards.

PSV were resilient in the first half and Peter Rosz’s side were all over the Bianconeri in the second half, to force extra-time.

Defender Renato Veiga, whose loan from Chelsea has been spectacular, had won all four matches in Italy when he played the entire match. Yet his involvement in the Netherlands lasted only 10 minutes, with Juve’s “lucky charm” replaced by Andrea Cambiaso following injury.

Motta severely missed the presence of the 21-year-old, who has lifted the team when he is on the pitch.

PSV central defender Ryan Flamingo eclipsed Veiga's input by popping up to notch the decisive goal on 98 minutes, which ultimately delivered the knockout blow to out-of-sorts Juve.

Dusan Vlahovic, the Serbia striker who got minutes for the first time in three matches, was denied by the woodwork in first-half extra time. The substitute, on for Kolo Muani, visibly lacked confidence and sharpness during his brief stint.

Ivan Perisic’s brilliant volley, which broke the deadlock on 53 minutes, showed Motta the kind of quality that he is missing from a forward.

The veteran Croatia international has a fantastic record of finding the back of the net against Juve. He scored four times against the Bianconeri when he played for Inter Milan, and had found the scoresheet during last week’s 2-1 defeat for PSV in Turin.

PSV extended their outstanding unbeaten home record to 13 games in major European competition, courtesy of this victory that sends them into the Champions League last 16.

It was a frustrating night for Motta, who was abrupt with his analysis and admitted: “Tonight we tried to overcome our opponent, but we were not able to be better than them for the duration of the match.

“PSV Eindhoven deserved this result, and to progress to the next [Champions League] round. 

“We will go back to training and work. Tonight we struggled, a defeat like this always hurts a lot.”