Juventus won’t play knockout stage of the UEFA Champions League for the first time since 2013-14. The Seria A giants suffered a shocking 4-3 loss to Portugal side Benfica on Tuesday night, which ensured they couldn’t get one of the top two positions in Group H.
With one game left to play, Benfica and Paris Saint-Germain have 11 points and have qualified for the knockout stage. Juve is third with the same number of points as Maccabi Haifa, and still has a chance to secure a spot in Europa League.
Benfica, who entered the match against Juventus with a 19-game unbeaten run at their Estadio da Luz, managed to strike first in the 17th minute thanks to a goal by 18-year-old defender Antonio Silva. Knowing what was at stake, Juve immediately started pushing for an equalizer and managed to get one via Moise Kean just four minutes later.
At this point, everyone expected Juve to take the command, but it was actually the Portuguese team who thrived under pressure. Benfica got the lead back in the 28th minute after midfielder Joao Mario scored from a penalty before forward Rafa Silva scored late in the first half to make it 3-1 for the home side. With Juventus unable to get things going in the second period, the latter player added one more goal in the 50th minute.
Facing a possibility of an embarrassing loss to a team that was considered the underdog, Juve started a late rally. They managed to cut into Benfica’s lead via goals from Arkadiusz Milik in the 77th minute and USMNT’s Weston McKennie in 79th, and it appeared the spectators were in for a thrilling finish.
However, Benfica fortified its defense and managed to hold onto the lead that saw them getting out of the UCL group stage for the second straight season. In 2021-22 Benfica made it to the quarterfinals before being eliminated by Liverpool.
“It was a typical Champions League match, we knew we were playing against a great team,” said Joao Mario after the game. “Our game was beautiful until the 70th minute, then Juve have a lot of quality and put us in difficulty. We know that there is a long way to go, the season has just begun. We must continue like this, keep the right mindset and always work hard.”
