Massimo Allegri concedes defeat against Real Madrid after ‘extraordinary’ Cristiano Ronaldo goal
Juventus manager believes the 3-0 deficit will be too much for his side to overturn and will instead focus on their Serie A efforts in the hope of retaining the Italian title
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Your support makes all the difference.Massimo Allegri conceded defeat in Juventus’ Champions League quarter-final tie against Real Madrid even though the second leg is yet to be played, with Tuesday’s 3-0 loss leaving the Italian side with too much work to do and in awe of one of the greatest goals seen in the competition.
Defending European champions Real may not be at their best in the league this season, sitting in third 13 points behind leaders Barcelona, but once again they proved their ability to turn it on when it mattered most to clinch what looks to be an unassailable lead ahead of the return leg at the Bernabeu.
But while the scoreline was impressive in itself, Juventus manager Allegri highlighted the incredible bicycle kick that Ronaldo scored, with the Italian labelling it “extraordinary” after watching his side go 2-0 down.
“I don’t know if Cristiano’s goal is the best in the history of football but it’s certainly an extraordinary goal,” he said. “You can only congratulate him for what he’s doing at present.”
But rather than focus too much on Ronaldo’s heroics in scoring both the first and second goals, Allegri was more upset with how his side let in the third, scored by Real’s left-back Marcelo, given the implications that it has for the remainder of the tie.
“I am disappointed about the third goal, because at that point we still could have turned the tie in the second leg. Now it will be impossible,” Allegri accepted.
“Real Madrid were devastating with their final ball. You don’t win three Champions League titles in four years by accident. We have to think about the league and then go to Madrid to play our game.”
But Allegri, who has been linked with a move to the Premier League at the end of the season, added that his unhappiness was not a reflection of his players, but more the calibre of Real.
"There is absolutely nothing to blame the boys for,” he added. “We faced an extraordinary team with probably the best player in the world.
"Now we raise our heads, we think about the future and the league.
"For the first hour we also made a good game. But everything happened against us. They are really devastating, otherwise they would not have won so much in the past few years.”
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