Man City victory can be ´new beginning´ for Juventus, says Vlahovic

Dusan Vlahovic believes Juventus’ 2-0 Champions League win over Manchester City can mark “a new beginning” for the Serie A giants.

Vlahovic headed in the opener early in the second half before Weston McKennie’s volley sealed a memorable victory for the Bianconeri, who inflicted a seventh loss in the space of 10 games in all competitions on Man City.

Juve are now unbeaten in six straight meetings with City (four wins, two draws), with this the Citizens’ longest winless run against a European opponent.

Thiago Motta’s side – who are unbeaten in Serie A but have drawn nine of 15 league games – are now up to 14th in the Champions League table, with City down in 22nd.

Motta’s side attracted renewed criticism following their 2-2 draw with Bologna on Saturday, but Vlahovic hopes Wednesday’s win can help them build some momentum.

“The whole team put in an outstanding performance. We prepared for the match in detail and put our plan into action perfectly,” Vlahovic said after the game.

“It’s a great result and gives us a big boost for the future. I had a bit of luck for my goal, but what counts is that the ball went in. I want to continue like this.

“We talked among ourselves after the Bologna game and decided that we cannot afford to wait for a slap in the face to react.

“The challenge against City was always going to be tough, but we have to approach the other games with the same intensity.

“We are a young team, and we lack some experience, but here at Juventus there is no time to lose. Hopefully this match will mark a new beginning.”

After their 2-0 defeat at Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday, Manchester City have lost seven of their last 10 matches across all competitions (W1 D2), as many defeats as they had suffered in their previous 105 matches combined.#UCL pic.twitter.com/Ch1PbVabOd

— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) December 11, 2024

City more than doubled Juventus’ tallies for touches in the box (34 to 13) and final-third entries (59 to 24), but they only narrowly edged the expected goals (xG) battle by 1.26 to 1.13, with 0.57 of their total coming from two Erling Haaland chances.

Haaland has had more big chances (12) than any other player in the Champions League this season but has only converted four of those (33%).

Juve midfielder Manuel Locatelli hailed his team-mates for the way they handled the City striker, saying: “Haaland is an extraordinary striker, one lapse in concentration and he punishes you.

“The whole team defended perfectly. We achieved a great victory, an impressive feat against a very strong team, led by the best coach in the world.

“This is a victory from the heart, we played with a real fire inside us. In the league we dropped points through avoidable mistakes, but we deserved a night like this. Now we must continue with this team spirit, always sacrificing for the result.”