Serbian striker Dusan Vlahovic
scored the fastest-ever goal on Champions League debut but Villarreal held Juventus
to a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their last 16 tie on Tuesday. The 22-year-old superbly controlled a long ball from Danilo before firing on the swivel
to give Juve the lead just 32 seconds after kick-off.

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Giovani lo
Celso almost scored the leveler for Villarreal when his shot beat the keeper
but couldn’t beat the post. However, Dani Parejo scored the equaliser just past
the hour mark after latching on to Etienne Capoue’s aerial ball into the box.

“It was
huge to score on my debut. It was very emotional,” Vlahovic said in his
post-match comments. “However, I cannot be 100% satisfied because we have not
won the game. Personally, I have already forgotten this game and I’m focused on
the next”.

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Vlahovic was
bought from Fiorentina for £58 million in January to help the Old Lady win its
first Champions League since 1996 and also regain its footing in the Serie A. It
was his second goal with Juventus since his transfer as the club seek to find a
top scorer after Ronaldo’s exit five months before in the offseason.

While the
Serbian striker gave Juve the perfect start they needed for the, they were lucky
to end the match with the eleven men on the pitch as Adrian Rabiot was let off
with just a booking after a dangerous challenge on Samuel Chukwueze.

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The second
leg will be played in Turin on March 16. Villarreal have never lost a Champions
League knockout game at home and will be hoping for the return of injured
striker Gerard Moreno.

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Meanwhile, Juventus
is trying to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since 2018-19 after losing
in the round-of-16 in the past two seasons.