Juventus beat Manchester City 1-0 in Champions league

City were beaten 1-0 in Turin to lose control of Group D, slipping to second behind the Italians and facing the prospect of yet another tough draw in the last 16.

The Croatia worldwide striker tangled with Nicolas Otamendi leading up to the goal, the City centre-back tumbling to the floor as his man dispatched Alex Sandro’s pinpoint cross. City went close to punishing that decision, yet Andrea Barzagli somehow deflected a close-range effort from substitute Raheem Sterling to preserve his side’s advantage.

But in open play, Juve were a class apart. Moments later Hart left the field holding the top of his leg and was replaced by Willy Caballero. Much has been made of the transitional phase that Juventus are going through since the departures of Andrea Pirlo, Artuto Vidal and Carlos Tevez but the rise of Pogba, along with the maturity and winning mentality that the backbone of this team consistently brings, meant Juventus were simply too hard a foe for a fragile City to overcome, providing them with a very harsh lesson in true collective balance.

Morata was then repelled by Hart, who later went off injured, after dribbling past two City defenders, although he ought to have fed the unmarked Paulo Dybala instead of shooting. Still, the side was packed with expensive talent and closely resembled that which proved so successful at Sevilla in terms of personnel and system.

“They didn’t create a whole pile of chances but when they did De Bruyne was excellent”. Both sides are in similar form and a draw would seem the most likely outcome, but you can always expect the unexpected in the Premier League. The more games a team plays in the Champions League the more experience they accrue and the wiser they become to the differing tactics and strategies of other clubs.

Brych blew his whistle after four minutes of stoppage time and the hosts clinched a huge win at home against one of the toughest rivals in the group.

“In the end we weren’t clinical enough”.

When Caballero last deputised for Hart in the Premier League, City suffered a chastening 4-1 loss at Tottenham in September as the Argentinian goalkeeper turned in an error-strewn display. Of course, there was less riding on this game because City were already through, but Pellegrini’s side showed little to suggest that they will be able revive the English Champions League challenge.

“You ask me and you ask every manager: you want to play in every competition”.

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini had earlier confirmed that the 28-year-old had been struggling with a back problem during the week, and hinted that the hamstring strain was a by-product of that earlier injury. “That’s part of football, to win you have to score goals and these things can happen”.