Benfica vs. Juventus wasn’t exactly one of the more glamorous matchups brought to us by the International Champions Cup. But it brought us the two best goals of the preseason tournament, namely the Luca Clemenza goal vs Benfica on Saturday at Red Bull Arena in New Jersey.
The match was scoreless after an hour. The deadlock was broken in the 65th minute by Benfica’s 22-year-old Spaniard Alejandro Grimaldo, who smashed a free kick that dipped perfectly into the back of the net.
Fantastic free kick from Grimaldo holy hell #SLBJFC #ICC2018 #SLBJuve pic.twitter.com/qU7M5AhUH1
— Jonah Takalua (@Destaquito2) July 28, 2018
Not bad for a left back. Reminds you a bit of the greatest left-back free-kick taker of all time: Roberto Carlos.
It was by far the best goal of the International Champions Cup so far. At least for about 20 minutes.
The Luca Clemenza goal vs Benfica arrived in the 84th minute. The 21-year-old Italian picked the ball up about 40 yards from goal and skated through two defenders before banging a shot off the crossbar and in.
Clemenza with a great piece of skill and a wonderful goal! 1-1!#Juventus #Juve #ForzaJuve #Benfica #ICC2018 pic.twitter.com/jLdxjElAtD
— JuveGIFs (@JuveGIFs) July 28, 2018
What a strike from a man who spent last season on loan at Ascoli in Serie B. Who needs Cristiano Ronaldo anyway?
Ultimately the match finished 1-1 in regulation, a just result given the quality of the two strikes. The match then immediately went to penalty kicks, where Juventus prevailed 4-2.
Benfica converted just two of its four spot kicks. American Keaton Parks, a 20-year-old midfielder from Plano who played the final 23 minutes for Benfica, stepped up and buried the first penalty kick for the Portuguese side, but it was all downhill from there as Juventus scored all four of its shots.
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