Juventus player ratings vs Atletico Madrid: Magic from Sandro and Cuadrado not enough
By John Vaccaro
LW: Cristiano Ronaldo 7/10
Cristiano Ronaldo was almost able to save Juve’s win in stoppage time of this match, but after unbelievably weaving through Atletico’s defense, his shot went just wide of the net. Outside of that, he mostly just drew the attention of the Atletico defense so the rest of the attack could operate. He didn’t end up being able to make a difference in this match, but we all know how much Ronaldo likes home legs against Atletico, so we’ll see what he can do at the end of November.
ST: Gonzalo Higuain 8/10
This was yet another positive performance from a resurgent Gonzalo Higuain. He made a great pass to set up Juan Cuadrado’s opener after making a strong run from Juve’s side of midfield. He helped keep pressure on Atletico as they tried to play out of the back. I’ve already seen some complaints on Twitter about his decision to shoot on a breakaway late in the second half instead of passing to Ronaldo, but I was perfectly fine with the decision. I’m not entirely sure the pass would have gotten through to Ronaldo if he had played it across as Ronaldo didn’t have a ton of separation from his defender and Higauin’s shot could have created an opportunity for Juve anyway. Oblak parried the shot back into the penalty area, so if Juve had somebody making the run they likely would have had an easy tap-in to put the match away. I once again loved Higuain’s effort in this match and hope he keeps this starting job.
RW: Juan Cuadrado 8/10
For the record, this grade is entirely because of that unbelievable finish to open the second half. Outside of that one moment he really didn’t give Atletico’s defense much of anything to worry about. He also nearly completely negated his goal when he once again let his temper get the best of him. Outside of his incredible goal, Cuadrado was mostly a non-factor in the match. Before the match I thought that Federico Bernardeschi should get the start and I’m really not sure that doesn’t remain true. I’m glad Juve got that goal out of Cuadrado, but he really shouldn’t be starting in the Champions League if there are other options.