After a promising first half at Allianz Stadium in which Juventus should've taken the lead against Villarreal in their Champions League Round of 16 second leg, Juve suffered an embarrassing second half collapse that saw the Spanish side score three unanswered while strolling into the quarterfinals.
For around 75 minutes, Villarreal was more than content to go absolutely nowhere, and when they did actually push forward, it was either a direct lump forward or the most methodical build-up imaginable. The possession battle was close, but a lot of Villarreal's possession was goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli or center back Pau Torres simply standing over the ball and waiting for a Juventus forward to close them down.
Juventus was in no hurry to press, but the Old Lady had a calculated dominance in the first half that should've been converted into the go-ahead goal. Álvaro Morata forced a good save out of Rulli, Dušan Vlahović struck the crossbar and then the Serbian striker was denied by the keeper.
Unai Emery's only thought must've been "we're only 75 minutes from penalties now," because other than some hopeful cracks from distance, the Yellow Submarine refused to emerge from the shadowy depths of its own half.
Dani Parejo vs. Arthur isn't exactly Luka Modrić vs. Marco Verratti, but after at least a bit of back and forth in the opening 45, the start of the second half saw things start to drift into listlessness. Juve had no answer for Villarreal's massed defense and quickly looked bereft of ideas, but Massimiliano Allegri strangely made no changes to his side.
Emery, on the other hand, turned to Francis Coquelin, Gerard Moreno and Samuel Chukwueze, and it was Coquelin, in the 75th minute, who charged into the Juve box before Daniele Rugani took him down with a poorly timed challenge.
The referee initially waved it away, but a quick look at the monitor revealed a penalty had to be given.
Another substitute, Moreno, stepped up and converted despite Wojciech Szczęsny guessing the direction correctly and getting his hand to it.
¡Penal para @VillarrealCF!
Se revisa la jugada con el VAR y se marca falta de Rugani¡En vivo! https://t.co/Mc1S1QvFBf
TUDN #TuChampions | #UCL pic.twitter.com/datK1iaVj6
— TUDN USA (@TUDNUSA) March 16, 2022
VILLARREAL LEAD AGAINST JUVE WITH 12 MINUTES REMAINING. pic.twitter.com/AhhAnEFZXX
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) March 16, 2022
It was game over seven minutes later when Serge Aurier flicked a corner kick centrally and Torres side-footed home.
Juventus are heading out the Champions League. pic.twitter.com/I6c1WLuXnm
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) March 16, 2022
Villarreal still had time to make it an embarrassing scoreline with another penalty in stoppage time, and Arnaut Danjuma converted as the whistles and boos rained down in Turin.
Arnaut Danjuma makes it 3. pic.twitter.com/Ps7eDkMl0G
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) March 16, 2022
Emery really knows what he's doing in these knockout competitions, while Juventus — with its third straight Round of 16 elimination — increasingly does not.
