next match: Villarreal (7 Aug 09)
prediction: Juve always hav good record against spanish oppostion..so i predict maybe a narrow win
for juve. BTW i don wan to underestimate 'the yellow submarine' though. They have good offensive
player like g.rossi, nilmar, llorente, franco etc
Added on August 8, 2009, 11:25 amJuventus trounce by Villarreal
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Juventus 1-4 Villarreal: Robert Pires Brace Helps Yellow Submarine Trounce Old Lady
Santi Cazorla broke the deadlock in the first half with a spectacular long range shot, before Nilmar and Robert Pires extended Villarreal's lead. Amauri made it 3-1 towards the end of the game but Pires scored his second of the night to break Juventus' hearts.
In the first half, both teams created their share of danger in the early stages as they almost took turns in producing chances on goal.
Villarreal had a great opportunity in the 35th minute, when a long ball found Giuseppe Rossi running, and the Italian combined it well with Nilmar before firing a low shot straight into Manninger's hands.
There were penalty claims right by Villarreal right after, when Cani moved past Fabio Cannavaro in the Juventus box and the ball hit the defender's hand, but the keeper waved away the protests.
Villareal found the net on 42 minutes as Felipe Melo fell when marking Cazorla, which gave the winger far too much room in front of the area and he made perfect use of it with a strong left-foot shot into the top corner.
It was a deserved lead for the Spanish men, who had enjoyed almost 60 per cent of possession in the first period.
Despite making several substitutions at half time, Villarreal continued controlling the game and doubled their lead just six minutes into the second half, when Manninger defended Jonathan's powerful shot and the ball fell to Nilmar, who was close to head home.
The Yellow Submarine's lead would again be extended on 78 minutes, when Escudero played Jonathan through, and the young striker moved past Cannavaro easily before sending in a low cross to Pires, who was on hand to side-foot home.
Juventus scored in the 85th minute through Amauri, when he fired from close range following a corner from the right.
But there was still time for more Villarreal action as Escudero's cross from the left went straight to Robert Pires, who fired an unstoppable right-foot shot home.
It was a well-deserved win for Villarreal, who confirmed their chances must not be written off this season. As for Juventus, the only positive thing they can take from this match is Martin Caceres' debut for the club.
This post has been edited by noir7559: Aug 8 2009, 11:25 AM