Sporting CP 1 Juventus 1: Higuain strikes late to rescue Allegri´s men

Juventus squandered a chance to reach the last 16 of the Champions League but salvaged a 1-1 draw after falling behind against Sporting CP.

Bruno Cesar’s first-half goal gave Sporting control of the game and they proceeded to dominate play on a night when victory for Juventus would have seen them clinch qualification for the knockout stage.

Gonzalo Higuain left it until the 79th minute to level the match and put the Italian champions back on course for second place in Group D but they will need another victory from their last two games to make sure of qualification.

While the result will have disappointed Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri, he may have been more troubled by his side’s performance, which lacked the fluency and confidence of their 2-0 win over AC Milan in Serie A three days earlier.

Sporting should have extended their lead in the second half, missing a number of clear chances to extend their lead as the Juventus defence struggled to contain the dynamic Gelson Martins and industrious Marcos Acuna, before the situation seemed to dawn on Juventus and Higuain converted one of very few chances to have come his way.