Galatasaray could be first Turkish team to make UCL r16 since 2014 after 1st leg win vs Juventus

5-2 win 

It was a thriller in Istanbul this Tuesday evening, as Galatasaray beat Juventus 5-2 in their Champions League play-off round first leg. Rams Park was electric and Gala got off to a perfect start, as former Norwich midfielder Gabriel Sara put them 1-0 in front in the 15th minute with a well taken finish. But then the game turned on it’s head as Juve midfielder Teun Koopmeiners equalised a minute later and then put the Old Lady in front around the half hour mark. It was the second half where the home side really asserted their dominance.

Noa Lang equalised four minutes after the break, before former Tottenham defender Davinson Sánchez put the Turkish side back in front. Things got worse for Juventus shortly after, as their half-time substitute Juan Cabal, who had been brought on because Andrea Cambiaso had been booked, received his second yellow card just 22 minutes after entering the field of play. Lang added his second of the night with 15 minutes to play after some self destructive defending from Luciano Spalleti’s team, before Gala substitute Sacha Boey.

The Turkish giants now have one foot in the round of 16, and if that is achieved, they would become the first Turkish team to reach the round of 16 stage of the Champions League since they themselves were knocked out by Chelsea in that round in the 2013/14 season. It was also the first time ever that Galatasaray scored five goals in a Champions League match.