New Delhi:
Argentine duo Gonzalo Higuain and Paulo Dybala scored twice as Juventus shocked Tottenham with a remarkable second half comeback to reach the UEFA Champions league quarterfinals with a 2-1 win on Wednesday.
Tottenham did astonishingly well in the first leg to draw 2-2, but playing the second leg at Wembley StadiumSpurs threw away a winning position and crashed out of the Champions league against the Italian giants.
Spurs attacker Son Hueng-min snatched a goal during first half to sum up a dominant display for Tottenham but rather than capitalizing on the lead, the London outfit failed to put up the same intensity in the second half and lost out after some tactical brilliance by Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri.
And it was the Argentine duo to strike those goals to end the hopes of Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino.
Higuain scored a neat goal in the 64th minute and then assisted the winner to his Argentine compatriot Paulo Dybala by holding off three Spurs players before playing it to Dybala who scored his first Champions League goal after a surprising 330 days UCL goal drought.
Harry Kane's header hit the post during the dying minutes of the second half and the trailing ball was cleared off the line by Andrea Barzagli, in what was the last chance for Tottenham to take the game to the extra time.
“It’s the history of Tottenham,” Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini said. “They always create many chances to score ... but at the end they miss something.”
Pochettino’s side became the first English side to be eliminated in the UEFA Champions League this season.
“We said, ‘Keep calm and the chances surely would arrive,’” Chiellini said. “We had to be concentrated and score when we had the chance. We did it.”
Juventus are now eyeing a third appearance in a Champions League final in four season, whereas Tottenham will be aiming to hold on to its top-four position in the Premier League to secure its return to the competition next season.
