Juventus manager Maurizio Sarri had a tough time explaining the 1-0 defeat against Lyon in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 on Wednesday.
Lucas Tousart scored in the first-half as the French club secured their first win over Juventus in European competition.
Juve struggled throughout the game and did not have a single shot on target. It was a frustrating day for the Serie A giants as Cristiano Ronaldo's claim for a penalty was denied following an apparent push from behind by Lyon defender Jason Denayer. Then, forward Paulo Dybala had a goal ruled out for offside in the 87th. A minute later, he also had a penalty shout turned down even though he seemed to be pulled back.
"It is difficult to explain why the circulation of the ball was so mild in the first half: in this way the teams attack and you suffer," Sarri said.
"We missed the aggression, and then we had an unfortunate episode on the occasion of the goal, given that we were temporarily in 10.
"During the game we were getting heated because, in addition to moving the ball slowly, we were often out of position. In the second half, we grew and moved better, regaining possession in the opposition's half of the pitch, which allowed us to close them in their area.
"In training we move much better and with much more speed."
Lyon manager Rudi Garcia praised his side's ability to rise to the occasion after their historic win.
"We had two different periods," Garcia said. "There was a very good first (half) where we followed the instructions to the letter, we did not suffer apart from a Ronaldo centre.
"The second (half) was more complicated, we were able to hang on, not to take goals, we noted solidarity at that time.
"I regret that we could not score a second goal in the first period from Toko Ekambi's header, or one or two other situations. I'm happy for the boys, they were able to rise to the occasion."
It was that sort of a day for Juventus. Defender Matthijs de Ligt walked to the side of the field in the 30th minute with blood pouring from the right side of his head after a teammate accidentally stepped on him following a corner. Later, Ronaldo waved away a fan who ran onto the field in the fifth minute of injury time, apparently trying to take a photo with him.
