Galatasaray Clinch Champions League Knockout Berth After Holding Off Juventus

Galatasaray secured a place in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League despite facing a tough defeat against Juventus. They lost the recent match by 3-2, however, their overall aggregate of 7-5 helped them to advance to the next stage of the league.

Victor Osimhen and Baris Yilmaz scored stunning goals in the extra time that helped the Turkish football giants to win the tie. They will now probably face Liverpool or Tottenham Hotspur in the next round that is expected to be a thrilling encounter.

Galatasaray last reached the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League in 2014, so they would be feeling ecstatic to make it to the next stage after such a long time. Fortunately, they played their latest match against a 10-man Juventus, which helped them hold off the dominance of the Italian giants and close the match with a narrow defeat.  

Juventus took a lead in the latest match when Manuel Locatelli scored in the 37th minute. There was some drama in the game when Lloyd Kelly was shown a straight red card shortly after the half-time. He had initially been given a yellow card, but after a check on the pitch-side monitor, referee Joao Pinheiro overturned his decision and issued Kelly a straight red card for serious foul play.

It was then shown live that the English defender was livid with this decision, calling it a “disgrace” after being sent to the dugout.

“It was pretty absurd. He gets the ball, and then what’s he supposed to do? Us defenders are penalised too often in today’s football,” said Federico Gatti.

“Leaving that aside, it was a brilliant reaction… It’s disappointing that we were just tired when we got to extra time. It’s disappointing because these are the best matches to play, the Champions League is the best competition.” added Federico Gatti.

After the game, the Italian giants were applauded by their supporters, as they displayed a stunning fightback by scoring back-to-back goals after losing Kelly due to a controversial decision.