PLAYER RATINGS | Lille 1-1 Juventus: Les Dogues pegged back by Dušan Vlahović penalty | OneFootball

UEFA Champions League, Round 4, 05/11/2024

One of this year’s surprise packages in the Champions League, Lille OSC entered this game after defeating Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid. However, Juventus would prove one scalp too many. Lille would lead the game at half-time but eventually would succumb to a disappointing equaliser (1-1).

The Match

Lille looked to continue a magnificent start to their Champions League campaign by taking the match to Juventus. The hosts didn’t see much of the ball maintaining only a 36% share of possession in the first half, but they looked to press high and cause problems for the Italian giants. A relatively quiet 20 minutes burst into life when Teun Koopmeiners from a cut-back fired past Lucas Chevalier. However, Juventus would see the goal ruled out for an offside in the buildup from Dušan Vlahović.

A few minutes later, Edon Zhegrova cracked the game open, the winger bested Juan Cabal before threading a pass through a block of Juventus players to find Jonathan David. The Canadian strode forward and placed his shot past Michele Di Gregorio. The visitors tried to draw level, but Vlahović was denied by an incredible reflex save from Chevalier. Later Koopmeiners once again found the back of the net from a cutback and was once again frustrated by the offside flag.

Juventus arrived in the second half with far more intensity. The visitors kept Chevalier busy as they tried to force their way back into the game. Bruno Génésio could sense a shift in momentum and took off Angel Gomes for Ngal’ayel Mukau. This momentarily gave Les Dogues a lift, but an unforced error from Benjamin André who brought Francisco Conceição down inside the box allowed Juventus to draw level. Vlahović took his penalty low and to the left while Chevalier leapt in the wrong direction.

Lille had very few moments where they looked to threaten their visitors. However, Zhegrova stung the palms of Di Gregorio late into the game, highlighting the danger that Les Dogues could muster almost out of nothing. The winger would remain the most threatening player on the pitch for the hosts as he looked to almost singlehandedly try to rescue the three points. There would be no final twist in the tale. Three points were lost, but Lille likely would have been pleased with a point if you had offered them that ahead of this game.

Lille Player Ratings

Lucas Chevalier – 7

Gabriel Gudmundsson – 5

Alexsandro – 4

The defender made quite a few errors on the ball during the first half as he had a tendency to pause and look for an extra moment to make his decision. He was quite lucky that Juventus struggled to take advantage of these moments where they won the ball high up the pitch.

Bafodé Diakité – 4

Aïssa Mandi – 4

Ayyoub Bouaddi – 6

Benjamin André – 4

Until the penalty incident, Benjamin André had a good game. The experienced midfielder was a calming influence on the ball when Lille got a brief glimpse of possession, and when he was asked to defend he was a tenacious presence. However, the penalty was a really poor mistake that allowed Juventus to capitalise on their momentum and draw level with Lille.

Angel Gomes – 5

Osame Sahraoui – 4

Jonathan David – 7

Edon Zhegrova – 8

Edon Zhegrova looks like a nightmare to play against. The winger is so tricky to keep up with. He has a brilliant touch, a wonderful pass, and a devastating shot. Juventus had to put two players on him when defending and still, he was able to find a way to set Jonathan David up. He was by far the most dangerous player that Lille had on the pitch.

Juventus Selected Player Ratings

Khéphren Thuram – 5

Not Thuram’s best performance on his return to France after leaving OGC Nice this summer for his father’s former club. The midfielder had flashes of good play but it was a bit too sporadic to cause Lille many issues. Off the ball, he was tasked with doubling up on Edon Zhegrova with Juan Cabal, but both struggled to contain the winger. He was substituted before the end of the game.

Teun Koopmeiners – 7

Hard to fault the Dutchman. He put the ball in the back of the net twice but was let down by his teammates being offside in the build-up. His positioning was clearly good and his strike looked dangerous, and in another game he likely would have put his name on the scoresheet.

Dušan Vlahović – 6

GFFN | Nick Hartland