Allegri on Juventus' shock Champions League elimination: This isn't a failure

Massimiliano Allegri jumped to the defence of his Juventus charges after they crashed out of the Champions League with heavy defeat at the hands of Villarreal on Wednesday.

The Italians went down 3-0 in Turin after collapsing towards the end of the second leg.

Defeat will increase the pressure on Allegri, who has endured a tough season so far on his return to Juve.

"I think the team played well for over 75 minutes," Allegri insisted to reporters after the final whistle.

"In the second half, Villarreal decided to just defend in block but they had one chance and they took it. Football is like that - one episode can change everything.

3 - Juventus have been eliminated in each of their last three Champions League Last 16 ties, as many elimination as they had in the previous 10 appearances in this stage of the competition. Barrier.#JuveVillarreal #UCL

"We had good chances in the first half, fewer in the second because Villarreal started defending with 11 men, clearly trying to bring the game to extra time. Than that goal changed everything."

Allegri added: “There are 10 teams in Europe that are on a better level than Juventus. It’s not a shame, it’s the reality. It’s not fair to say that this is a failure”.

Defender Danilo, meanwhile, was downhearted after the loss, stating: "We must only apologise to our fans and continue working hard."

Allegri, who won five consecutive Serie A titles in as many seasons during his first stint with Juve, was welcomed back to the bench in 2021 when Andrea Pirlo was relieved of his duties.

But he has struggled to recapture the magic this term, with Juve languishing in fourth place in Serie A seven points behind leaders Milan and now out of Europe.

The Old Lady still have one more chance