It is often said in football to expect the unexpected and this season has been no different. This past weekend, reigning Scudetto champions Juventus took on bottom-placed Parma in a game that should had been an easy cruise to all three points. After all, Massimiliano Allegri's men had crushed the hapless Crociati 7-0 in the reverse fixture in Turin earlier this campaign and Roberto Donadoni's battle-weary side had only won four games prior to the encounter.
Well, this surely shocked both Juve fans and any general calcio followers who happened to tune in:
60' PARMA IN VANTAGGIO: Mauri scarica un destro dal limite dell'area servito da Belfodil, palla imparabile per Storari #ParmaJuve 1-0
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) April 11, 2015
Parma ahead in the 60th minute: [Jose] Mauri set up by Belfodli on the edge of the box and fires an unstoppable shot past Storari
Still, the Bianconeri are well on track to successfully defend their title. However, their focus will now be turned to an ambitious Monaco squad as they hope to become the second Italian team to clinch a Treble since Inter did so back in 2010.
Allegri, who opted to rest top goalscorer Carlos Tevez and midfield orchestrator Andrea Pirlo for the game against Parma, has never made it to a Champions League semi-final. In his three and a half seasons with AC Milan, his best result was the quarter-finals, where the Rossoneri were undone 3-1 on aggregate by serial opponents Barcelona during the 2011-2012 season.
So far, things have gone well for Allegri since taking over at Juventus this past summer. After navigating through the group stages to finish second to Atletico Madrid, they easily blew away Bundesliga outfit Dortmund 5-1 over two legs, including humiliating them 3-0 in Germany in a classy showing from start to finish.
However, Monaco could present a much tougher task than the floundering German side. Although Juventus are no slouch offensively, key centre-back Giorgio Chiellini believes his team could face some difficulties in breaking them down:
.@chiellini: "@AS_Monaco can count on a mix of youngsters and international players. They also have Ligue 1's strongest defence." #UCL
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) April 13, 2015
Meanwhile Allegri has issued a very clear warning to his squad:
.@OfficialAllegri: "Se non giochiamo con la stessa intensità tecnica e mentale delle partite vs #BVB, difficile passare turno" #JuveMonaco
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) April 13, 2015
"If we do not play with the same same intensity and mentality [we did against] Dortmund it will be difficult for us to get through"
Last season's Ligue 1 runners-up finished this weekend with a comfortable win over Caen and still have a shot at finishing in the top two:
With PSG ace Zlatan Ibrahimovic banned for the next few games, things could get pretty interesting as this season approaches its final few weeks. And in Europe, Leonardo Jardim's men have been surprisingly efficient. Despite scoring just four goals in the group stages, the Portuguese tactician believes that they have done enough to earn their spot in last eight:
L.Jardim :"Nous sommes là car nous le méritons, en terminant notamment 1er de notre groupe."#JUVASM pic.twitter.com/TNsJVn3SgB
— AS MONACO (@AS_Monaco) April 13, 2015
"We are here because we deserve it, having finished first in our group"
Many had expected Monaco to be crushed by Arsenal but they shocked Premier League fans by trouncing the Gunners 3-1 at the Emirates, which was enough to secure them passage despite losing 2-0 to Arsene Wenger's men at home. So, not surprisingly, key midfielder Joao Moutinho, whilst respecting the Turin titans, re-iterated his manager's thoughts regarding their chances:
"We [could] say that Juventus are the favourites, but then Arsenal were also [the] favourites," he was quoted as saying by Italian publication Tuttosport.
"For us it will not be easy, but we will give 200 per cent in order to achieve our goal. We want to play [in] the semi-finals [and] after the semi-finals, we want the final. We are young, ambitious, and [have] an important opportunity that we need to exploit [by] staying focused for 180 minutes as distraction will be lethal against Juve."
Both Juventus and Monaco are gunning for their first Champions League semi-final appearance in over ten years. La Vecchia Signora's last appearance at that stage was during the 2002/2003 edition, where they powered past the Blaugrana 3-2 on aggregate. For Monaco, their last showing was during their historic campaign of the 2003/2004 term, where they made it to the finals before being defeated by Porto.
The Bianconeri and the Rouges et Blancs have only met once before, and that was during the 1998 Champions League semi-finals. A 4-1 thrashing in Turin was enough to send Juventus through, despite losing the away fixture by 3-2. All in all, the Italians have a good record against French opponents, having won three and drawn two out of their last six meetings.
And Monaco will definitely have this fact in mind ahead of today's clash:
Tuesday's game marks our 12th European meeting with French opposition in Turin: W9 D2 L0 is our record. #JuveMonaco pic.twitter.com/cVjeiqo3pw
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) April 13, 2015
Still, as evidenced in the first leg of this season's Coppa Italia versus Fiorentina, it is feasible to beat them at home.
Jardim's side are also no strangers to successfully pulling off an away win as Gunners fans are unfortunately well aware of. As such, viewers should hopefully be in for an interesting clash as Monaco and Juventus aspire to strike first blood en route to securing a spot in the anticipated final in Berlin.
Juventus vs Monaco team sheets
Juventus' lineup: Buffon, Lichtsteiner, Bonucci, Chiellini, Evra, Vidal, Pirlo, Marchisio, Pereyra, Tevez, Morata.
Monaco's lineup: Subasic, Raggi, Carvalho, Abdennour, Kurzawa, Fabinho, Kondogbia, Moutinho, Carrasco, Martial, Dirar
Juventus' subs: Storari, Barzagli, Padoin, Sturaro, Pepe, Llorente, Matri.
Monaco's subs: To follow
Match details, result and original broadcast info
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