Juventus fought from two goals down to draw 2-2 against Bayern Munich in their Champions League round-of-16 first leg on Tuesday, where Paulo Dybala and Stefano Sturaro scored to cancel out goals from Thomas Muller and Arjen Robben.

Pep Guardiola’s side controlled the tempo of the fixture early on, but a second-half fightback saw Juve produce a spirited response, something they’ll hope to see more of in Bavaria.

Substitute Sturaro grabbed a second for Juve after Dybala capitalised on a defensive error to register the hosts’ first, and Bayern will rue this as a result let slip from their grasp after looking so confident.

Eurosport helped illustrate just how impressive Juve’s resurrection was, shoving their way back into a match that at one point looked far out of their reach:

Joshua Kimmich and David Alaba continued in central defence for Bayern in the absence of Jerome Boateng, Holger Badstuber and Javi Martinez, while Juve were forced to make do without star defender Giorgio Chiellini.

The Bianconeri aren’t without their stars, of course, but Bleacher Report’s Adam Digby noted how Paul Pogba was being prevented from gathering a head of steam and getting the home outfit into the fixture:

It paid dividends, too, as the possession meter soared in favour of the German guests, and the shot count also began to run away with the visiting party.

After a series of denied chances, it was almost poetic that Robben, Douglas Costa and Robert Lewandowski were each involved in the build-up to Muller’s opener just before half-time.

Robben’s cross from the right byline found Costa, whose deflected pass back across Gianluigi Buffon’s net eventually found its way to a lurking Muller, who passed the ball beyond two defenders to finally put Bayern ahead.

Muller still had a lot of work to do in finding the back of the net, and Bayern entered the half-time interval in much brighter spirits, which DW Sports’ Ross Dunbar agreed was fully deserved:

Juventus started the second half in similar fashion to how they ended the first, and a slip from Leonardo Bonucci allowed Lewandowski the space to tee up Robben on the right flank.

Juve felt their defender was fouled in the build-up, but Robben didn’t take a second thought as he rasped home a trademark finish, per BT Sport, cutting onto his left before hammering a second past Buffon:

A hasty response was needed if the Bianconeri were to have any chance of a quarter-final future, and it was an untimely mistake from youngster Kimmich that gave the hosts precisely the opening they needed.

Kimmich stumbled in an attempt to steady the ball, and Mario Mandzukic laid a simple pass for Dybala to half the deficit, netting his first goal in European competition. WhoScored.com detailed his healthy contributions for Juve of late:

Massimiliano Allegri rang the changes and brought on Sturaro in place of Sami Khedira before Alvaro Morata replaced goalscorer Dybala. Of those two, the Spaniard might appear the more likely offensive impact, but it came to be Sturaro who landed Juve’s next blow.

The two substitutes combined, and Sturaro lunged to get on the end of Morata’s header across the face of goal, toeing the ball into the roof of Manuel Neuer’s net from close range. Stefan Bienkowski of DW Sports expected Guardiola to be “furious” with the second-half display:

It wasn’t only true that Bayern no longer looked as threatening, but a more assured presence on the ball had given the Bianconeri a much more polished look.

Bayern’s second half was summed up by the fact their first corner of the period didn’t come until the 89th minute, a statement to Juve’s renewed resilience, as illustrated by Gianluca Di Marzio reporter David Amoyal:

The two teams continued to exchange blows until the last, and despite Bayern’s late attempts to make up for letting the lead slip, an absorbing first-leg encounter finished at two goals apiece.

Juventus are scheduled to make the return trip to the Allianz Arena on March 16, and Allegri’s side have no time for respite as they prepare to play host to Inter Milan this coming Saturday.

Meanwhile, Bayern have a tricky task of their own and will travel to face Wolfsburg on Friday evening in a bid to keep their place atop the Bundesliga.

Last season’s Champions League finalists did terrifically to complete their revival and earn a draw on Tuesday, but conceding two away goals could come back to bite Juventus as they look for the win in Germany.

 

Post-Match Reaction

Bayern could afford to be disheartened with the manner in which they threw away a two-goal lead in Turin, making the return leg that much more difficult than it might have been.

Per German outlet DW Sports, Guardiola insisted his side “played very well for 90 minutes,” as opposed to the 60 minutes many were suggesting, before hailing the quality of his opponents:

Goalscorer Robben was also eager to look on the bright side in his post-match comments and described the 2-2 scoreline as a “good position” for his side, per Bayern Munich’s official Twitter account:

Dybala also got on the scoresheet and praised his Juventus team-mates for their never-say-die attitude:

Fans can only hope to see the same amount of drama in next month’s return leg, with Guardiola hoping to advance his European journey with Bayern before he leaves for Manchester City this summer.

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