16 September 2025
The Juventus Under-20s had a mixed debut in the UEFA Youth League against Borussia Dortmund. It was a first half to forget for the Bianconeri, who found themselves 3-0 down after 45 minutes at home, but that was followed by a proud second half in which Simone Padoin's boys showed their worth, narrowing the gap and coming close to equalising on several occasions.
The final whistle blew with the score at 3-2 in favour of the German side. Below is a recap of the match and comments from the Juventus Under-20 coach.
THE MATCH REPORT
The first half very much went the way of the away team, who managed to capitalise on the early chances they created. In the ninth minute, an excellent move forced Alessandro Bassino to score an own goal, while minutes later, Samuel Inacio made it 0-2 before the 15-minute mark.
In the 35th minute, the German team scored their third goal with Pharell Kegni, while the Bianconeri had only a couple of chances that fell to Destiny Elimoghale, who was unable to find the back of the net.
In the second half, however, everything changed, starting with the attitude of Juventus Under-20s, who showed enormous character and a desire not to give up. The hosts began to push forward and put Dortmund on the back foot, with Diego Pugno scoring his first goal of the season in the 52nd minute with a header from an excellent cross by Elimoghale. It was a goal that opened up a gap in the German defence, and Padoin's boys were able to take advantage.
In the 61st minute, after a persistent attack in which Julien Noah Froese, Borussia Dortmund's goalkeeper, made a couple of superb saves, Francesco Crapisto scored the goal that made it 3-2.
At that point, Juventus laid siege to the opposition's goal, trying everything they could, with Antonio Stefano Merola playing a starring role and coming close to scoring the equaliser on several occasions.
Our boys kept trying until the end, but unfortunately, the comeback could not be completed.
SIMONE PADION'S COMMENTS
"The first half was complicated in terms of making an impact and showing personality. We also lacked a bit of courage, even in the duels. I emphasised this at half-time, I talked about it with the lads, and what we needed to do is start again from the second half. Every challenge teaches us something: today's lesson is that technique and tactics matter, but motivation often goes beyond everything else. If you want to get a result, it has to start from within and from your spirit. We were flat in the first 45 minutes, but we did well to find motivation and get back into the game, without managing to complete the comeback.
"At the end of the first half, I didn't talk about technique or tactics, I talked about motivation and spirit and explained that, with that approach, we wouldn't be able to move forward. If they want to be players when they grow up, the attitude they showed in the first 45 minutes is not the right one. That attitude trumps everything else, the desire to attack and do better than the opponent. I had some doubts about the fact that it was the second game in three days, from a physical point of view. Then, on the pitch, we saw great intensity in the second half, which comes entirely from the mind and not from the legs."
