After a string of disappointing defeats, Juventus finally registered their first win of the season by beating Malmo 3-0 at the Eledon Stadion in their Champions League opener. The Bianconeri opened the scoring through Alex Sandro before goals from Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata saw them clinch a much-needed victory.
It wasn’t the most exciting game nor the best performance Massimiliano Allegri’s side are capable of producing as they could’ve found the net on many more occasions against a frankly lackluster Malmo side who are yet to win a game in the past three weeks. However, Juventus managed to get the job done in the end.
This win marks the first time the Bianconeri scored thrice in their Champions League opener for the first time since 2001. It’s also Juve’s first clean sheet since March when they beat Spezia 3-0.
Startelvan är här!
Avspark på Stadion klockan 21:00.#UCL pic.twitter.com/7oYkmwLjNa
— Malmö FF (@Malmo_FF) September 14, 2021
Malmo were heavy underdogs coming into the game and weren’t expected to do much.
Juventus were without Federico Chiesa who’s aiming to play against Milan during the weekend. Federico Bernardeschi also didn’t make the trip as a precautionary measure. However, the four South American players who missed the Napoli fixture, all started.
With Chiesa out, Juan Cuadrado was expectedly fielded as a right midfielder while Danilo functioned as the right-back. Giorgio Chiellini was benched for the game and Matthijs de Ligt took his place. This allowed Paulo Dybala to wear the captain’s armband.
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— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) September 14, 2021
Juventus were on the front foot from the very first minute and attacked towards the Malmo goal whenever they could. Alex Sandro opened the scoring in the 23rd minute after meeting Cuadrado’s low cross with a header. This was the Brazilian’s very first goal in any European competition.
Alex Sandro came very close to doubling Juve’s lead but his shot was just wide off the far post. Morata also tried to score but Malmo goalkeeper Ismael Diawara managed to keep him at bay.
The Spaniard won a penalty for his team after he drew a foul from Lasse Nielsen. Dybala found the net through the subsequent spot-kick to double Juve’s lead. Shortly after, Morata extended the Bianconeri’s lead through what was probably the best goal of the match to finish the first half.
HT | ⌛️ | A thrilling start has us 3-up at the half! ⚽️⚽️⚽️#MFFJuve #JuveUCL #ForzaJuve pic.twitter.com/y56CakXfwN
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) September 14, 2021
Juventus started the second half strongly and looked determined to extend their lead but Diawara managed to foil them.
Both teams made changes in the second half with Morata coming off for Moise Kean while Weston McKennie came on for Rodrigo Bentancur.
Malmo brought on Bosnian midfielder Adi Nalic who at least ensured that the crowd were aware of his team’s presence. Wojciech Szczesny was hardly tested during the entirety of the game; in fact, the first save he had to make was after the hour-mark.
Juve continued to attack and Kean appeared to have scored their fourth goal but it was ruled out for offside. He had a few more opportunities to find the net but was unable to do so. The closest Malmo came to scoring was during injury time but substitute Martin Olsson’s shot was saved by Szczesny.
The Bianconeri could’ve easily bagged more goals but they eventually managed to win the game, and by a convincing margin.
MATCH SCORECARD
September 14, 2021- Champions League 2021-22 Matchday 1
MALMO – JUVENTUS 0-3
SCORERS: 23′ Alex Sandro, 45′ Dybala, 45+2′ Morata
MALMO (5-3-2): Diawara, Rieks (75′ Olsson), Brorsson, Nielsen, Ahmedhodzic, Berget, Rakip (59′ Nalic), Christiansen, Innocent (75′ Nanasi), Colak, Birmancevic (59′ Abubakari)
JUVENTUS (4-4-2): Szczesny, Danilo, De Ligt (86′ Rugani), Bonucci, Sandro, Cuadrado (82′ Kulusevski), Locatelli, Bentancur (67′ McKennie), Rabiot, Dybala (82′ Ramsey), Morata (67′ Kean)
REFEREE: Arthur Dias from Portugal
NOTES: Yellow Cards: Brorsson, Nielsen (M), De Ligt (J); Added Time: 1st Half 1′, 2nd Half 5′