TURIN, 16 May 2003 — Juventus produced a stunning performance to beat holders Real Madrid 3-1 in their Champions League semifinal second leg on Wednesday and set up the competition’s first ever all-Italian final against AC Milan.
Juve went through 4-3 on aggregate after the first leg ended 2-1 for nine-times European champions Real and Marcello Lippi’s side will now face Milan, who got past city rivals Inter in Tuesday’s other semi, in the final at Manchester United’s Old Trafford on May 28.
First-half goals from David Trezeguet and Alessandro Del Piero put Juve in command of the tie against the Spaniards who have won the competition three times in the last five years.
After the break Real’s Luis Figo missed a chance to bring his side level on aggregate when his weak penalty was saved by Juve keeper Gianluigi Buffon in the 67th minute.
Pavel Nedved added a third six minutes later but then former Juve favorite Zinedine Zidane pulled one back in the 89th minute to make the hosts sweat through five tense minutes of added time before the passage was assured. But there was a bitter note for Juve as Nedved, their driving force this season as they also retained the Italian league title, will miss the final after picking up a booking in the second half for a needless foul on Real sub Steve McManaman.
The all-Italian final completes a remarkable turnaround in fortunes for Serie A clubs after not a single team reached even the quarterfinal stages in the past two seasons.
Juve’s defeat to Real in 1998 was the last time an Italian side reached the final while their penalties victory over Ajax Amsterdam two years before that was the country’s last success.
Juve knew that to have a chance of lifting Europe’s premier trophy for a third time they would have to produce something special. They did just that.
