Champions League: Defending champs lead Juventus 3-0 after opening leg

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The run-up to the second leg of the Champions League quarter final tie between Real Madrid and Juventus saw a pouring rain in Madrid.

At Real Madrid’s training grounds on the city outskirts in the morning, Los Blancos came out to kick the ball around and get soaked, while the TV camera operators and photographers from Spain, Italy, and many other countries took care to keep their gear dry in the deluge.

In the afternoon it was time for Juventus to stretch and warm up on the pitch at Real Madrid’s Bernabeu stadium in the city center.

Real Madrid trains before match against Juventus. /CGTN Photo

Reporters were looking at the training to see who was warming up – for Real Madrid. Captain and defender Sergio Ramos was with his teammates, although he didn't play due to yellow cards. But the key attention was focused on the press conferences after the training.

In the morning, it was Real Madrid manager, Zinedine Zidane, whose team has won the Champions League trophy the past two years. It seems like they should be easily headed to the semifinals, having beaten Juventus last week in Turin 0-3.

Cameras sheltered from rain during Real Madrid training. /CGTN Photo

Despite that, Zidane told reporters that “50 percent of the qualifying round” is riding on the match in Bernabeu and he added, “We haven’t won anything yet.”

This, just hours before Roma came from behind in different quarter final match to oust mighty Barcelona, at Olimpico stadium in Rome.

Barcelona won the first leg 4-1 at home last week, but Roma rallied for a 3-0 victory on Tuesday night at Olimpico and advanced on aggregate with their crucial away goal.

Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri and goalie Gianluigi Buffon at a press conference. /CGTN Photo

Heading into Wednesday’s night game in the Bernabeu, Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri told reporters, “We have to play without thinking about what we can or can’t do, and we will need to have a bit of luck.”

In the aftermath of the Roma-Barcelona match, Allegri and Zidane, and their teams, surely have it clearer than ever what’s at stake on Wednesday night in Madrid.