Villarreal travel to Italy tomorrow evening to take on Juventus in the second leg of their Champions League last 16 clash. It’s a mouthwatering encounter and it’s finally poised after the two sides drew 1-1 in the first leg back at La Ceramica.
Juventus took a first-minute lead on that occasion through Dusan Vlahovic only to be put under serious pressure by Villarreal for the remainder of the encounter. Dani Parejo equalised for the Yellow Submarine in the 66th minute but Villarreal left the game feeling like they should have taken a lead with them to Turin.
They didn’t and now they’re going to have to win at what remains one of the most difficult places to go in European football despite the poor moment Juventus are living.
Villarreal’s form since that night has been mixed; they beat Espanyol and Celta Vigo but lost to Osasuna. They’re seventh in La Liga. Juventus, who are fourth in Serie A, have beaten Empoli, Fiorentina, Spezia and Sampdoria since their trip to La Ceramica.
“We want to get here to be here, to stay, not to be an ephemeral passenger,” Unai Emery assured pre-game in comments carried by Cope. “Being in the last 16 is important but we want to stand on our own two feet and face our rival toe-to-toe.
“We’ve arrived [in Italy] with a lot of desire. But they’re also going to want to win from the first minute to the 90th. It’s going to be a game in which many things are going to happen and we have to be prepared to try and maintain greater control than them. But they’ve not lost in Serie A for months; this is a team accustomed to living under pressure to win and they win a lot.”
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🧐 "Ellos son los favoritos jugando en casa y nosotros buscaremos nuestra oportunidad"
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