However, the Italian champions’ dynamic high-pressing and swift counter attacks flustered Pep Guardiola’s men at the Allianz Arena.
Allegri aimed to disrupt Bayern’s passing rhythm and limit constant activity within their half by varying his defensive approach — at times Juve retreated into their half utilizing various defensive shapes, or quickly pushed forward as unit to peg Bayern into their half. Without Paulo Dybala, Claudio Marchisio, and Giorgio Chiellini, Juve reverted to a flat back four, with Paul Pogba slightly behind Alvaro Morata to press from the front. Considering Joshua Kimmich’s poor display at Juventus Stadium, Juve’s intent to apply pressure on Bayern’s back-line was logical.
Guardiola’s preferred first choice centre-backs — Javi Martinez and Jerome Boateng — may have coped better in this situation, but the entire Bayern back-line appeared shoddy throughout. The Bavarian’s were behind in the opening five minutes through a simple Sami Khedira pass over the defence that David Alaba failed to clear — Stephan Lichtsteiner’s advanced run into the box was key — which led to Pogba’s opener.
Where teams tend to either solely sit extremely deep or press the Bavarians in their own third, Juve combined both methods to great success. Errors from Kimmich and Manuel Neuer presented legitimate goal-scoring opportunities for Juve — the latter was wrongly ruled offside — which fully justified Allegri’s approach. On the other hand, Morata and Sami Khedira took turns pressing Xabi Alonso, while Pogba either stepped forward to close down a centre-back or shifted within close proximity of, Alex Sandro, to ensure Douglas Costa encountered 1v2 situations. Juve often maintained a 5-4-1 with Evra positioned centrally and tracking Muller’s movement, while Leonardo Bonucci stepped forward to force Robert Lewandowski away from goal.
At times, Juve resembled a 6-3-1, as Juan Cuadrado was pegged deeper to cope with Franck Ribery when Lichtsteiner was pulled into narrow positions. Still, Juve were fairly comfortable out of possession due to their diligent work-rate and clear understanding of their roles. The away side’s extremely low-block encouraged Bayern players forward, and equally offered space to charge into on the counter.
Guardiola instructed his full backs to drift into half spaces to help Bayern gain control of midfield, but equally conceded space in wide areas behind Philip Lahm and Alaba. Allegri’s men managed to double their lead through Morata’s excellent individual slalom from Juve’s box which led to a fine Juan Cuadrado finish. Then, Alex Sandro guided a loose ball beyond Kimmich and Alonso into the left channel for Pogba, but the Frenchman’s cross to the far post for Cuadrado was saved by Neuer.
Bayern’s buildup play was fairly languid for large portions of the first half, often encountering difficulties breaking lines in central areas. Penetration stemmed through forward passes from the centre-backs and Alonso, but disciplined defending from the Juventus back-line prevented Muller and Lewandowski from combining between the lines. While most passes were incomplete in the final third, Costa represented Bayern’s sole threat when he cut in from the right to deliver crosses into the box.
Although Guardiola’s teams are renowned for their possession dominance, the Spaniard’s based his approach around Bayern’s strength through the flanks during his time in Germany, and their persistence to solely attack through central areas was bizarre. Ribery struggled to win individual battles on either flank, and on the rare occasion the Frenchman surged into key areas, both his finishing and decision-making were underwhelming.
Guardiola’s decision to introduce Juan Bernat for Benatia offered additional width down the left, but the start of the second half witnessed another wave of Juve pressing that nearly ended the tie. Morata’s willingness to chase hopeful balls into the channels saw the striker squander two chances to increase Juve’s lead through another Alaba error, and an excellent individual move from Pogba.
Kingsley Coman was summoned immediately for Alonso, pushing Vidal as the pivot, and Costa into a central position alongside Muller. Guardiola turned to Vidal’s ball-winning skills ahead of the centre-backs and two wide players aiming to deliver crosses into the box. Ideally, this was the logical alternative for Bayern considering they lacked guile and a crafty creative player between the lines, whilst Alonso was being overrun in midfield.
Costa remained Bayern’s main threat from a central position by delivering a few dangerous balls into the box, and there was no surprise the Brazilian created Lewandowski’s goal. Coman’s persistence to take on Alex Sandro was also decisive, and though he initially struggled against the Brazilian, the former Juve player’s cross created the equalizer — Vidal’s counter-pressing prevented Evra from clearing his lines, here, which validated Guardiola’s decision.
“It was not easy to be 2-0 up after 45 minutes. We showed character. We had to defend better with those last two balls,” said Allegri.
“They were unable to create anything and were not dangerous. But then from the 70th minute on everything changed. That’s football.”
Elsewhere, Allegri’s changes did the opposite. Stefano Sturaro didn’t offer Khedira’s dynamism and discipline in midfield, whereas Morata’s departure deprived Juve of an offensive outlet on the counter-attack. While Mario Mandzukic’s work-rate can’t be questioned, the Croatian failed to hold up the ball for others to join the attack, and he lacked the pace to threaten Bayern’s makeshift back-line under pressure.
Juve were now pegged into their half with no outlet going forward, while Guardiola pushed his full backs into higher narrow positions and encouraged the wingers to drive to the byline and deliver crosses with Vidal — an improved defensive shield in terms of mobility — ahead of the centre-backs. The final Bayern change of the night witnessed Guardiola opt for Thiago rather than Mario Gotze for Ribery, which pushed Costa to the left, and the Spaniard behind Lewandowski.
More so, it’s fitting Thiago scored the winner because the buildup showcased the guile Bayern were missing throughout. Evra’s failed clearance attempt fell to the Spaniard and he played a nifty one-two with Muller in the box before placing a low effort past Gianluigi Buffon. Coman put the tie out of reach with a splendid goal on the counter — Juve pushed more men forward during this period — as another nervy second leg tie at the Allianz Arena was settled through Bayern’s width.
“During halftime I told the players that they could not afford to concede another goal, but that if we could score one ourselves, anything could happen, especially with the German mentality. I asked them to play more down the wings, with [Franck] Ribery and [Douglas] Costa. Then at the start of the second half Juve had some chances, but after that we took control of the game,” said Guardiola.
“This is football: One minute you play badly, the next you are really good.”
Allegri’s tactics were superb, here, but Juve simply lacked the personnel to maintain their incredible work-rate that influenced their dominance over Bayern for the initial hour. Without a mobile presence upfront, Juve were forced to hang on for the final 20 minute of normal time, against an athletic Bayern side that utilized their wide options as the match progressed.
Although Guardiola deserves credit for his successful changes in the second half, it remains peculiar that it took the Spaniard an extensive amount of time to alter the pattern of the match. Guardiola’s quest for a European title at Bayern continues, and though they remain the closest thing to a challenge for current holders, Barcelona — on paper — a fit squad diminutive factor between success and failure.
