Brave Malmö Falls in Champions League Opener

Malmö earned plaudits despite losing to Juventus in its first-ever Champions League group-stage match. 

  • Robin Olsen dives in vain for a shot from Carlos Tevez that gave Juventus a 2-0 lead in the opening match of Group A in the Champions League September 16 in Torino, Italy. Joel Marklund/Bildbyrån

  • A pair of dreams met Tuesday night at Juventus Stadium in Torino, Italy and after 90 minutes, one of them was fulfilled.
    The dreams were the same – success on the biggest stage in European club football and for nearly an hour, Malmö FF lived that dream. The defending Swedish champions held mighty Italian champions Juventus scoreless for almost 60 minutes, a dream start for the Skåne underdogs, but Juve striker Carlos Tevez had his own dream. The Argentina international had always dreamt of scoring in a Champions League fixture and in the 59th minute, his dream came true.
    Tevez scored twice in the final 30 minutes as Juventus overcame a stubborn Malmö side to claim a 2-0 victory on the opening day of play in Group A in the UEFA Champions League.
    The Juventus forward had played 14 games in the Champions League for Manchester United and Manchester City before he joined Juventus but had never scored. He broke his personal drought when he beat Malmö net minder Robin Olsen just before the hour mark. He added a second a minute into second-half stoppage time.
    The result was a bitter pill for Malmö to swallow as it made its Champions League group stage debut. Head coach Age Hareide deployed a defensive lineup, using three center backs and two defensive midfielders. His plan was to force Juventus to break down a defensive wall, using the pressure already on the Italian club as a weapon.

  • Malmö captain Markus Rosenberg tried to get past Juventus defender Kwadwo Asamoah during the Group A match in the UEFA Champions League match September 16 in Torino, Italy. Joel Marklund/Bildbyrån

  • Juventus on edge
    Juventus entered the match under fire from fans and the media for its lackluster results in Europe despite its successive domestic titles. For nearly an hour, the plan worked. The Malmö defense constantly thwarted Juventus attacks, even though the Italian side controlled the ball for long stretches.
    The Italian champions looked more and more nervous as minute passed and they failed to score. Malmö held Juventus without a shot on goal for 43 minutes while it managed two of its own on Italian World Cup goalkeeper GianLuigi Buffon. Magnus Eriksson tested Buffon at the half-hour mark when he unleashed a powerful volley off a pass from Markus Rosenberg.
    Rosenberg, the Malmö captain, was the most dangerous player on the pitch until he left with a left knee injury in the 56th minute after a clash with Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini. Three minutes later, Tevez took over.
    The Argentine played a give-and-go with Kwadwo Asamoah before striking a brilliant right-footed shot into the corner of the net. Stephen Lichtenstiener and Fernando Llorente also had chances, but Olsen turned them aside.
    Juventus was now firmly in control but still unable to add to its tally until injury time. Filip Helander pulled down Alvaro Morata outside of the area and Tevez calmly struck the ensuing free kick, placing it just under the cross bar, out of Olsen’s reach.

  • Praise for Malmö
    Juventus manager Massimino Allegri praised Malmö for its game plan and its skill.
    “I think they knew exactly how to play us,” Allegri said. “They are in the middle of their season while we are just starting, so they are in better shape physically right now than we are. They made us run and run. I don’t think they are the pushovers some people thought. It will be very difficult to play them when we go there next month.”
    The Swedes, the disappointed with the result, agreed with Allegri.
    “I think we proved we belong here,” said Malmö defender Emil Forsberg. “We were not afraid of them and we showed that.”
    Eriksson said he thought nerves might have played a role in the second half. The match was the first-ever group stage game for Malmö.
    “We started to defend too deep in the second half and everything became more complicated,” Eriksson said. “I had a big chance in the first half but [Gianluigi] Buffon made a great save. As I said they have several great players and Buffon is certainly one of those. We still have five games to play, we are going to try to take as many points as possible and let's see what happens.”
    Malmö next faces Olympiakos at Swedbank Stadium, Malmö on October 1.