TURIN – Cristiano Ronaldo scored with a bicycle kick which was outrageous even by his standards to lead Real Madrid to an emphatic 3-0 win away to Juventus in their Champions League quarter-final first leg on Tuesday.
With his back to goal, Ronaldo launched himself into the air to meet Dani Carvajal’s chipped ball and produced a perfectly-executed bicycle shot, which flew past keeper Gianluigi Buffon and put Real 2-0 ahead.
Ronaldo had got Real off the mark with a third-minute goal, scoring for a record 10th successive Champions League game, and Marcelo was also on target as Juve’s five-year unbeaten home record in European competition crumbled.
A red card for playmaker Paulo Dybala completed a miserable evening for the Serie A champions, beaten 4-1 by Real in last season’s Champions League final.
Juventus had not lost at home in Europe since Bayern Munich’s 2-0 win in April 2013, a 27-match run, but that record was quickly under threat as their usually impregnable defence was split open with nonchalant ease after only three minutes.
Marcelo flicked the ball between two defenders to set Isco free on the left, and his low cross to the near post was flicked into the net by Ronaldo for his eighth goal in six meetings against Juventus.
Juventus responded well to the setback, launching a series of dangerous attacks, and Real goalkeeper Keylor Navas prevented what seemed a certain goal with a superb point-blank save from Gonzalo Higuain’s volley.
Most goals: 119 ✔️
Only player to score in 10 straight games ✔️
Most final wins: 🏆🏆🏆🏆✔️
Most goals in a season: 17 (2013/14) ✔️
Cristiano Ronaldo = #UCL legend 👍 pic.twitter.com/E0OXrsTOJ3
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) April 3, 2018
Defender Giorgio Chiellini also missed a good chance when he misdirected a header from a corner, but Real were always menacing and Toni Kroos thumped a rising shot against the bar from 25 metres.
Juve also began the second half in lively mood, but lost their way in a dramatic eight minutes.
An uncharacteristic mix-up between Buffon and veteran defender Chiellini started a Real attack, which ended with Ronaldo’s astonishing goal in the 64th minute.
👀👏🔥😱
SIMPLY SENSATIONAL FROM RONALDO!
This bicycle kick could be goal of the season. #UCL pic.twitter.com/IFa9zCXNuq
— SuperSport (@SuperSportTV) April 3, 2018
Two minutes later, Dybala, booked in the first half for a dive in the penalty area, was given a second yellow card for a clumsy challenge on Carvajal.
Marcelo applied the coup de grace in the 72nd minute as he switched passes with Isco, and then Ronaldo before rounding Buffon to score into an empty net.
Ronaldo nearly grabbed a hat trick, and although Juve escaped further damage, they face an almost impossible task in next week’s return.