Barca banking on another rousing recovery
TURIN, Italy — Barcelona’s Champions League bid hit the rocks for the second time, but coach Luis Enrique is hopeful of another epic salvage operation after a 3-0 Champions League quarterfinal defeat to Juventus on Tuesday.
“Until tomorrow, I don’t even want to think about how we can come back from this,” Enrique raged after Tuesday’s first-leg loss in Turin where Argentina forward Paulo Dybala fired the hosts into a 2-0 lead by the 22nd minute.
Italy international centerback Giorgio Chiellini, famously bitten by Barca’s Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez at the 2014 World Cup, headed home Juve’s third in the 55th minute to wrap up victory.
“If we get our act together, we can put four goals past anybody,” said Enrique.
“But right now, I’m so angry I don’t even want to think about it.”
Juventus, humbled 3-1 by the Spanish giant in the 2015 final, was a deserved winner on the night and while Enrique was quick to berate his misfiring side, he offered plaudits to counterpart Massimiliano Allegri.
“I don’t know if I can see the difference between this Juventus side and the one we beat in 2015. But this is a great looking Juve team that played a really top-quality game tonight,” he said.
“They played with great intensity and put a lot of pressure on us.”
He even had a kind word for Dani Alves, despite the rightback’s stinging attack on his ex-club’s “false and ungrateful” board two months ago.
“Dani Alves is still a great player who is still very competitive,” Enrique said. “I can only congratulate him on his performance.”
Nou guarantees
Juventus, crowned European champion twice and a runner-up six times, look to have one foot in the last four of the competition a year after its last-16 elimination to Bayern Munich.
But despite seeing Dybala eclipse illustrious compatriot Lionel Messi and Juventus underline its credentials in style, Allegri was not getting carried away.
Barcelona looked down and out in Paris following a 4-0 reverse to Paris Saint-Germain in February. But in the second leg at Camp Nou, the Catalans produced a stunning comeback to rout Unai Emery’s side 6-1 and reach the last eight.
“It isn’t easy overcoming a team like Barcelona, but we also dug deep to keep a clean sheet. That was fundamental for us,” said Allegri, whose side is on track for a record sixth straight Serie A title and a third consecutive league and Cup double.
“But we have to remain humble, keep our heads down and keep working. PSG scored four, and look what happened.”
Man-of-the-match Dybala concurred but the former Palermo striker couldn’t contain his joy after one of his “greatest nights”.
Dybala’s silky skills and fancy footwork often lead to comparisons with five-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi, whom he grew up admiring from afar.
Messi was Barca’s main attacking threat on the night, but Dybala stole the show.
And the 23-year-old called for Juve to make his contribution count.
“It’s one of my greatest nights in football. Let’s not ruin it now,” said Dybala, who joined the Turin giant from Sicilian side Palermo for over $34 million in June 2015.
“I’ve dreamed of nights like this since I was a kid.
“As a team, we’re in a really positive period, we have belief in ourselves and that is really important in terms of our objectives.
“We can’t relax too much, because we’ve yet to visit Camp Nou and it will be difficult.
“But we’re also a top side, and tonight we showed how much we want this.”