3 things we learned from Juventus’ 2-2 draw with Tottenham

After going down 2-0 in the first 10 minutes, Spurs came back to earn a crucial first-leg draw in the round of 16.

Tottenham Hotspur struggled early but fought back to earn a crucial 2-2 draw with Juventus in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16. Two Gonzalo Higuain goals in the first 10 minutes had Juventus off to a roaring start, but it was Christian Eriksen’s fantastic equalizer for Spurs in the 71st minute that made the biggest difference in the match.

Tottenham started out playing terribly, somehow losing track of Hiuguain on a set piece to give Juventus an early and easy lead just moments into the match. Things went from bad to worse when a rash and unnecessary foul by Ben Davies gave Juve a penalty, and the Allianz Stadium was rocking with the hosts holding a 2-0 lead just nine minutes into the match.

Juventus looked like they were happy to take the result as it was, but Tottenham started fighting back harder and harder, and while Juventus had their chances to extend their lead — Higuain missed a perfect chance for Juventus to go up 3-0 when he got a through ball stuck between his feet when he was clean through on goal, forcing him to make a cutback and a rushed shot that went wide — the pressure Spurs were creating couldn’t be ignored. That pressure came good in the 35th minute when Dele Alli made a perfect one-touch pass to put Harry Kane through, and the young English striker made no mistakes with a gorgeous finish to make it 2-1.

Juventus could still have extended their lead if not for Higuain missing a penalty right at the stroke of halftime, but at that point Tottneham were in almost complete control of the match. Even in the second half with Juventus trying to hang onto their lead, Spurs looked more likely to score than the hosts, and they did exactly that in the 71st minute with Eriksen capitalizing on a free kick earned by Dele Alli to scorch a shot low past Gianluigi Buffon to level the score for Tottenham.

This result is huge for the English side, who go home in the second leg with a pair of tie-breaking away goals in their pocket. If anything, the scoreline wound up flattering Juventus who spent far too much of the match back on their heels after their dominant start. They say 2-0 is the most dangerous lead in football, and Juventus certainly seemed to prove that on Tuesday.

Juventus: Gianluigi Buffon; Mattia Di Sciglio, Mehdi Benatia, Giorgio Chiellini, Alex Sandro; Sami Khedira (Rodrigo Bentancur 66’), Miralem Pjanic; Federico Bernardeschi, Douglas Costa, Mario Mandzukic (Stefano Sturaro 76’); Gonzalo Higuain

Goals: Higuain (2’, pen. 9’)

Tottenham Hotspur: Hugo Lloris, Serge Aurier, Davinson Sanchez, Jan Vertonghen, Ben Davies; Mousa Dembele, Eric Dier; Christian Eriksen (Victor Wanyama 90’+2), Dele Alli, Erik Lamela (Lucas Moura 89’); Harry Kane

Goals: Kane (35’), Eriksen (71’)

Three things we saw

Tottenham Hotspur have a fullback problem

Both of Tottenham’s fullbacks, left back Ben Davies and right back Serge Aurier, had major issues in this match, with both of them giving up penalties in the first half. Their struggles went well beyond that, though — Aurier had a nightmare of a time trying to keep possession, and Davies could neither keep Federico Bernardeschi from getting past him nor get much of anything past the Juventus winger when trying to help Spurs’ possession game.

While Tottenham have several very good center backs, a great defensive midfield setup, and a world-class goalkeeper, the lack of quality they’ve had out wide in defense has consistently held them back. Aurier was supposed to help fix that, but his pricey summer signing hasn’t really panned out. Danny Rose is better than Davies on the left, but he still has his issues even when he’s fit, which oftentimes is a big question. If Tottenham are really going to become an elite team, this is the biggest area of the pitch they need to upgrade on long term.

Gonzalo Higuain is one of the most frustrating star strikers in a long time

Higuain started off the game with an absolutely clinical brace of goals in the first 10 minutes, but from there on out it was a different story. He fluffed one magnificent chance to make it 3-0 when he got a through ball stuck between his feet before eventually putting a shot wide, then at the end of the first half he banged a second penalty off the crossbar instead of putting his team up 3-1. And things didn’t really get better from there.

Higuain was often caught well out of position in the second half, and when he did get on the ball he was too frequently a step slow to take advantage of any openings his teammates were helping create. Then he whined himself into the book after spending way too long gesticulating and screaming about a non-call on an apparent foul — one that was, at least, consistent with how German referee Felix Brych had called the match.

For all the good Higuain does Juventus up top, he too consistently seems to find ways to take away from the team’s strengths as well with his form randomly disappearing and his frustrations on the pitch, and those have been issues that have plagued the Argentine throughout his career. Higuain absolutely could be one of the very best strikers in the game, but he just can’t keep his head screwed on straight long enough to get there.

This result is fantastic for Tottenham

After Juventus went up 2-0 inside the first 10 minutes of the match, partly- oking conversations started that Tottenham would be perfectly happy with a 2-1 loss to take an away goal home to Wembley. When Harry Kane scored 35 minutes into the match, the jokes turned very serious, and it was little surprise to see the Spurs squad on the pitch setting up in a way that showed they were willing to see the game out with that score.

But they also never quite stopped pushing forward when opportunities presented themselves, and throughout the second half the visitors looked like the more dangerous side. So when Dele Alli earned a free kick at the top of the box and Eriksen scored on a fantastic low shot from that spot to equalize, the match went from acceptable to fantastic for Tottenham. Two away goals and a level scoreline are exactly the result Spurs needed here — Juventus have to win in London now, unless they can earn a draw by a scoreline of 3-3 or higher. That doesn’t seem likely, and the pressure in the tie is completely on the Italians now.