Three thoughts from Juventus Stadium as Juventus wrapped up a confident, comfortable 3-0 win over Barcelona in their Champions League quarterfinal first leg:

1. Juventus leave Barca needing another miracle

Just one round after they did it the first time, another "Miracle of Camp Nou" will be required from Barcelona if they're to reach the Champions League semifinals. And surely Juventus, so resilient here and so dangerous in attack, will not fold as Paris Saint-Germain did in the last 16. Barcelona's deficit is only 3-0, but Italy's serial champions, with Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini in central defence ahead of Gianluigi Buffon in goal, should not fold as PSG did.

Manager Massimiliano Allegri's supreme trust of those world-class defenders allowed him to field five attack-minded players to pick at the glaring holes in Barcelona's midfield and defence. Two goals from Paulo Dybala and one from Chiellini were each exposure of the visitors' fallibility at the back.

Dybala has been at pains to renounce the title of "the new Lionel Messi," but a pirouette and bending finish to score Juve's opener in the seventh minute was seemingly plucked right from his Argentine compatriot's playbook. Barcelona were statuesque in their defending, but the 23-year-old was razor-sharp in his execution.

His second goal 15 minutes later was even more impressive. After Mario Mandzukic cut the ball back from the left flank, Dybala's finish was thunderous and Barca goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen could get only a hand to it. It came just seconds after Andres Iniesta had blown a golden chance, screwing his shot wide of the post when Messi had cut open Juve's defence. Dybala's magic wand of a left foot is another facet to remind of Messi.

Ahead of Dybala, Gonzalo Higuain (bulkier than in his Real Madrid days) used his strength and power to hold the ball up and harry Barcelona's defenders whenever possible. Jeremy Mathieu was a weak point in Barca's first-half three-man defence as Dybala pressed him time and again.

In Juve's midfield, Miralem Pjanic might be Europe's finest dead-ball proponent these days, and Higuain should have done better than head the ball straight at Ter Stegen from Pjanic's third-minute free-kick cross. Higuain's ability to conjure chances from seemingly lost causes was clear in a dipping shot in the final minute of the first half that Ter Stegen could only parry, almost palming it into Dybala's path.

Mathieu was put out of his misery at half-time when replaced by Andre Gomes as manager Luis Enrique shifted Barcelona's formation around to little avail. From a Pjanic corner, Chiellini outjumped and outmuscled Javier Mascherano to score the hosts' third. His emphatic header flew into the bottom right-hand corner of Barcelona's goal, where nobody was on the back post to clear it.

Three goals ahead,and with an away goal to be kept at bay, Juventus retreated into a defensive shell, showing Barcelona how to clear their lines -- though sometimes by the narrowest of margins -- with Messi's continuing genius creating chances to require some last-ditch stuff.

2. Messi struggles alone against Juve's rearguard

It was a frustrating night for Barca's star. Lionel Messi often dropped very deep in search of the ball, as he often does these days, given that space around goal was being squeezed by Juventus' defence and Sami Khedira's energy in front of them. To get through, Messi either had to slalom through the massed ranks or pick a pass. He attempted both all night. The ball that found Iniesta for that crucial miss before Dybala's second was sublime and had the stadium sighing, only for Barca's captain to waste it and let the home fans breathe again.

Messi had the ball in the net on the half-hour only for Luis Suarez to be penalised for fouling Khedira. At that point, all of Barcelona's play was going through Messi with Suarez and Neymar marginalised, as they remained for much of the night. Meanwhile, Iniesta and Ivan Rakitic were being forced to battle for the ball in midfield.

Two months shy of his 30th birthday, Messi can no longer sustain the perpetual motion of his younger days; he must play in fits and starts, conserving his energy when possible. And he himself was guilty of missing a good chance seconds after half-time, dragging a shot wide after Neymar had been robbed on the edge of the area.

Yet one area in which Messi could not help his team was in defence, where far too many chances were being conceded for him to be able to mount a credible rescue.

3. Luis Enrique's tactical gamble fails

The damage was definitely done for Barcelona, and perhaps the two-legged tie already lost, by the supreme disorganisation with which they began the night. With Sergio Busquets suspended, Luis Enrique shifted Mascherano forward into defensive midfield, where he was so outstanding for Argentina in the last World Cup. Gomes, blamed widely for Barca's 2-0 defeat to Malaga at the weekend, was sheltered until half-time called for a serious rethink.

Dropping left-back Jordi Alba in order to play Jeremy Mathieu as a third centre-back was a throwback to the formation Luis Enrique adopted when throwing caution to the wind in the second leg against PSG. This, though, was a very different situation and very different opponent. Gerard Pique and Mathieu, both uncomfortable as the flanking pair of the trio, were found wanting when Dybala scored his early double.

It was not until the 11th minute, and already 1-0 down, that Barcelona could put together a run of passes in their usual style, including goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon making a glorious fingertip save from Suarez after a Messi pass of supreme quality. Juventus were themselves sitting back, content to hold their own shape as they looked for opportunities on the counter. Such chances would come all night as Barcelona's defending offered plenty of gaps to exploit.

Source:
courtesy of ESPNFC

by JOHN BREWIN

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