Fernando Llorente scored the only goal of the game as Sevilla defeated Juventus at home, seeing them through in third place and into the Europa League where they will defend their crown.
Meanwhie, Juventus finish second in Group D with 11 points and will face the tougher half of the draw in the round of 16.
Alvaro Morata needs to find his scoring boots
Another tough outing for the young Spaniard, struggling in front of goal. Despite Sergio Rico’s incredible performance, Morata missed several chances that could have sent Juventus through on top of the group. It has been a frustrating campaign for the ex-Madrid youngster with only three goals to his name and often being played out of position on the left of a front three. In Tuesday’s 3-5-2 formation, starting up front alongside Paulo Dybala, there were no excuses and he should have done much more with his chances. With Mario Mandzukic often injured, Morata needs to find form and become the vital player he was last season for the Turin giants if they are to challenge for silverware on all fronts.
Fernando Llorente comes back to haunt Juventus
The 30-year-old Spaniard enjoyed two trophy-winning seasons in Turin before completing his move to the La Liga side. It was his goal that put Sevilla through to the Europa League ahead of Borussia Moenchengladbach and pushed Juventus down to second place where they will now face a tougher opponent in the round of 16. Llorente’s first season at Juventus was fruitful, building a strong partnership with Carlos Tevez and scoring important goals, including a header away to Madrid in the Champions League group stage. His second season was not as successful from a personal standpoint however, often out of the lineup at the expense of fellow Spaniard Morata and not netting as often as his debut season. At Sevilla, however, he is an important cog and will be key to their ambitions of retaining their Europa League crown.
Juventus’ return to form has come at the right time
Tonight’s loss will do Juventus no favours but they had won their last five straight prior to this defeat, which has seen them steadily climb up the Serie A table and qualify for the round of 16 with a game to spare. That gives Allegri’s men plenty of confidence heading into the round of 16 where they will now face a tough opponent. For Juve, they will want to avoid the likes of Barcelona and Bayern Munich, but aside from those two, Juve have every right to back themselves against the rest of the bunch.
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