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Ajax stun Ronaldo's Juventus to reach Champions League semis

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AFP Turin
Last Updated : Apr 17 2019 | 9:35 AM IST

Ajax stunned Juventus to reach the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since 1997 as Matthijs de Ligt's thumping second-half header secured a 2-1 second-leg victory in the last eight in Turin on Tuesday.

Cristiano Ronaldo, bidding for his sixth Champions League title, scored a 28th-minute header to put Juve ahead after a 1-1 first-leg draw, but Donny van de Beek levelled for Ajax before half-time.

Teenage centre-back De Ligt struck midway through the second period, though, to seal a 3-2 aggregate win and set up a last-four clash with either Manchester City or Tottenham.

The young Dutch side had already eliminated three-time defending champions Real Madrid en route to the quarters, overturning a 2-1 home defeat against the Spanish side with a memorable 4-1 victory at the Santiago Bernabeu.

"It's an incredible evening for Ajax and its players and also for Dutch football," said coach Erik ten Hag.

"Once again we eliminated the favourites.

"We said before we were not the favourites but with our philosophy we can go further, we've again surpassed our limits."
"In the last month we have been struggling with several injuries. Even tonight we were missing important players."
- Juve forced to reshuffle -
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First Published: Apr 17 2019 | 9:35 AM IST

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