Juventus player ratings vs Valencia: Mario Mandzukic sends Juve through to knockout stages
By John Vaccaro
LB: Alex Sandro 6.5/10
This was a short day for Alex Sandro, coming off in the 45 minute. Before that he didn’t find much success or have much influence on the match. He sent in the occasional cross, but none produced anything noteworthy. He also wasn’t asked to do much defensively in the match either. Sandro’s performance didn’t provide much to talk about other than the implication that his early removal could mean and injury.
CB: Giorgio Chiellini 7.5/10
The Juve captain returned to the starting lineup against Valencia and he once again made Juve’s defense nearly impenetrable. He made multiple tackles and interceptions as Juve’s last line of defense to keep Valencia from getting a chance on goal. He kept Valencia’s strikers from ever making an impact on this match. It was another standout defensive performance by one of the world’s best center backs.
CB: Leonardo Bonucci 6.5/10
Who was responsible for the one dangerous chance Valencia had in this match should come as no surprise. That’s right, it was Leonardo Bonucci who lost track of his man and allowed Diakhaby to get a clean chance on goal. He played alright the rest of the match and distributed the ball well from the back, but this was another in a line of defensive lapses that could’ve been costly if not for Szczesny bailing him out. Confidence in Bonucci was running low before this match and this performance didn’t dispel the notion that maybe Benatia should be starting these matches right now.
RB: Joao Cancelo 7.5/10
Joao Cancelo was impressive against his former team for the second time this season and he even managed to do it as both a right and left back this time around. Cancelo