After fighting back from a 1-0 deficit to take the lead with three minutes left to play, Juventus were undone by a lapse of concentration that allowed Galatasaray to strike back and earn a 2-2 draw.
Juventus vs. Galatasaray: Final score 2-2, Umut Bulut’s late goal grabs a point for Galatasaray
Fabio Quagliarella’s 87th minute goal looked to be enough for Juventus to claim all three points but Umut Bulut answered back 71 seconds later to earn Galatasaray a draw in Turin.
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Didier Drogba have the Turkish side the lead late in the first half but a penalty in the 78th minute allowed Juve back into the match. Fabio Quagliarella's header in the 87th minute looked to be the winner for Juve but seconds later, Umut Bulut took advantage of a defensive lapse and scored the equalizer for Galatasaray.
For the most part the first half in Turin was quite poor. In saying that, I’m complementing Galatasaray because their highly compact and effective defense combined with excellent support from the midfield really stifled Juventus’ attack.
It may seem a bit lazy to accuse a professional team of looking at their opponent’s previous Champions League result -- Gala were destroyed by Real Madrid 6-1 -- but it really felt like they expected to just walk right over the Turkish club.
Just when it seemed like the first half would limp into the break, something finally happened in the 36th minute!
A ridiculously lackadaisical back pass by Leonardo Bonucci knocked the ball up in the air and right into the path of Didier Drogba who pounced on the opportunity. Gianluigi Buffon came hard off his line but rather than selling out to block the Galatasaray striker, he attempted a half-hearted sliding tackle that was evaded by Drobga who then rolled the ball into the empty net.
Juve finally woke up after the goal putting some decent pressure on Galatasaray's defense in the minutes after falling behind. Carlos Tevez put the ball in the net but was ruled offside and just missed with a snap shot a minute later.
The tempo and pace were better from Juventus in the second half but Galatasaray’s continued organized defense, especially around their box, frustrated Juventus and started to lead to a trend of the players launching ambitious efforts from 20-30-yards from goal that were close to enough to appear like near-spectacular strikes but were more an obvious symptom of Juve being unable to break down the Turkish defense.
Fernando Llorente entered the match in the 68th minute and made an immediate impact, nearly finding the equalizer on his first attempt. The chance came when Kwadwo Asamoah finally delivered a good cross into the box and Llorente's towering header sailed just over the crossbar.
Juve's lifeline finally arrived in the 76th minute when Nordin Amrabat needlessly stuck his leg into Fabio Quagliarella inside the area, giving Juventus a penalty. Arturo Vidal stepped up and blasted a shot past Fernando Muslera to pull The Old Lady even at 1-1.
Three minutes from the full time Andrea Pirlo sent a curling ball into the box that found Quagliarella in space right in front of Muslera. The striker directed the ball past the keeper with an excellent header, causing the fans at the Juventus Stadium to erupt with glee as their side took a 2-1 lead.
The joy would be short lived.
A mere 71 seconds after Juventus went ahead a long ball towards the top of the Juve area was headed down by Drogba to Umut Bulut who was completely unmarked on the left side. Bulut wasted no time squaring up and sending a shot past Buffon to pull Galatasaray right back even at 2-2.
Not a bad start at all for new Galatasaray manager Roberto Mancini who took the job on Monday.
Juventus: Buffon, Barzagli, Bonucci (Llorente 68’), Chiellini, Lichtsteiner (Isla 45’), Vidal, Pirlo, Pogba, Asamoah, Tevez, Vucinic (Quagliarella 26’)
Goals: VIdal (76’), Quagliarella (87’)
Galatasaray: Muslera, Chedjou, Hakan Balta, Semih Kaya (Zan 25'), Eboué, Felipe Melo, Selçuk Inan, Sneijder (Bulut 64'), Bruma, Riera (Amrabat 60'), Drogba
Goals: Drogba (36’), Bulut (88’)
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