Result: Dynamo Kyiv 0-2 Juventus
Date: 20 October 2020
Venue: NSK Olimpijs'kyj
Alvaro Morata stepped up in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo to hand Juventus a 2-0 win over Dynamo Kyiv in their UEFA Champions League opener.
Manager Andrea Pirlo brought back the regulars after a shock draw at newly-promoted Crotone, with Dejan Kulusevski the only youngster retaining his place to parner Alvaro Morata upfront in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo, who tested positive for Covid-19 last week.
The visitors had early chances to go ahead but Federico Chiesa's goal-bound shot towards the back post was saved by goalkeeper Georgi Bushchan while Giorgio Chielini missed close-range header moments later from a corner situation.
Andrea Pirlo's charges kept on piling the pressure and Kulusevski had a chance ten minutes before the break after turning brilliantly at the near post but his sharp shot was saved by Bushchan.
However, the visitors were losing their momentum in the closing phase of the first stanza, giving Dynamo space to play but the Ukranian side could not trouble goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny and the first stanza ended goalless as a result.
Morata finally broke the deadlock for the Old Lady barely a minute into the second stanza with a close-range finish from a rebound after Bushchan spilled Kulusevski's shot inside the six-yard box.
Juventus were finding it difficult to turn their dominant possession into goal-scoring opportunities after that, with Dynamo keeping a compact shape at the back.
The hosts were growing in confidence in the last quarter of an hour, fancying their chances going forward but Morata crushed their hopes with glancing a header past Bushchan from Juan Cuadrado's cross in the last six minutes to double the lead for Bianconeri.
Sergiy Sydorchuk forced Szczesny into a great save in stoppage time with a strike from the edge of the box but Juventus had done enough to bag their first three points in Group G.
