Thiago Motta: ‘Juventus changes forced, but I made decisions at right time’ | OneFootball

Thiago Motta reveals he made three ‘forced’ substitutions when Juventus crashed out of the Champions League to PSV Eindhoven, but defends his tactical decisions.

The Bianconeri had the 2-1 advantage from the first leg in Turin, having also beaten PSV 3-1 there earlier in the league phase of the tournament.

Tim Weah cancelled out the Ivan Perisic opener in Eindhoven, but Ismael Saibari forced extra time, where Ryan Flamingo prodded home from point-blank range on a set play situation for 3-1 on the night, 4-3 on aggregate.

“We struggled in the second half, had equalised in such an important moment for us and we were not capable of holding on to it,” Thiago Motta told Sky Sport Italia.

“It was under control in the first half, it’s true that they pushed harder, while we hit the woodwork. We knew PSV were a quality side who push and attack, but we suffered a lot here.

“We cannot be happy with the two goals we conceded, especially with predictable changes of play and Bakayoko allowed to control the ball in our area. We must do much better if we want to compete at this level.

“At times we were in the game, at others they were superior. We knew that PSV would attack, but we were unable to do the things we needed throughout the match.”

Thiago Motta defends Juventus decisions in Eindhoven

epa11908701 Ismael Saibari of PSV Eindhoven scores the 2-1 lead against Juventus FC goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio during the UEFA Champions League knockout phase play-offs 2nd leg soccer match between PSV Eindhoven and Juventus FC in Eindhoven, Netherlands, 19 February 2025. EPA-EFE/KOEN VAN WEEL

Renato Veiga went off injured after just 11 minutes to make way for Andrea Cambiaso, moving Lloyd Kelly to central defence, but some of Thiago Motta’s substitutions raised a few eyebrows.

Manuel Locatelli and Teun Koopmeiners were taken off, leaving Cambiaso in midfield, but the coach revealed there were reasons.

“Koop had a fever yesterday and this morning, so he asked to come off. We moved Andrea into midfield with Khephren, but then Cambiaso too had to come off because he’d been out for a while and was not feeling good. All three substitutions were forced.”

As Juventus were looking visibly off the pace in the second half, why did Thiago Motta not make changes earlier?

“I don’t believe I was late in my changes. Before the opening goal, I wanted to give a bit more energy to the squad, but then we equalised and that was a moment we had to calm things down and retain the balance. I believe I made my changes at the right time.”

Check the Football Italia Player Ratings for PSV 3-1 Juventus

Juventus had never previously been eliminated in the Champions League after winning the first leg, going through in the previous 11 occasions.

Meanwhile, PSV Eindhoven had not won a Champions League knockout tie since 2006-07 against Arsenal.

Locatelli told Amazon Prime Video Italia that Juventus “threw the qualification away,” but Thiago Motta did not agree with his own captain.

“It is true that they pushed harder and were superior, but we also had a big chance with Dusan Vlahovic hitting the woodwork and it was an open game.

“We did not throw anything away. We tried to the end, but we ultimately weren’t stronger over the whole match, so PSV deserved to go through.”

All three Italian teams in the play-offs were eliminated, arguably by weaker opposition on paper, as Milan lost to Feyenoord, Atalanta to Club Brugge and Juventus to PSV Eindhoven.

This means for only the third time in the Champions League history, Serie A has only one representative in the last 16, after Juve in 2014-15 and Milan in 2013-14.