Thrilling Showdown: Juventus and Dortmund’s Historic Eight-Goal Clash in 45 Minutes

4-4 Draw

In a historic clash, Juventus made a remarkable comeback to earn a 4-4 draw at home against Borussia Dortmund, marking only the fifth occurrence of such a result in UEFA Champions League history. After trailing by two goals, Dušan Vlahović netted his second of the evening in the 90+3 minute to bring the score to 3-4, with Llyod Kelly scoring the equalizer just three minutes later at 90+6.

This thrilling draw is the first of its kind in nearly six years, the last occurring on November 5, 2019, when Chelsea faced Ajax. Prior to that, Bayer Leverkusen and Roma also ended in a 4-4 draw on October 20, 2015. Before that, Chelsea battled Liverpool to a similar result in the 2008/09 quarterfinals, with Chelsea advancing 7-5 on aggregate.

Juventus has experienced similarly chaotic matches in the past. On September 13, 2000, the team equalized a 4-3 deficit against Hamburger SV, a game that is certainly etched in memory for Borussia Dortmund’s coach, Niko Kovac, who scored what appeared to be the winning goal before Juve’s late equalizer. This might explain the subtle smile on Kovac’s face after Tuesday’s dramatic finish in Turin.

Eight Goals in 45 Minutes – Juventus and Dortmund Match Record by Bayern Munich and Dinamo Zagreb

What makes this match unique compared to the other four 4-4 draws is that all eight goals were scored in the second half. The first half provided no indication of the impending goal fest. Just eight minutes into the second half, Karim Adeyemi opened the scoring at 53’, followed by Kenan Yildiz’s incredible equalizer at 63′. Felix Nmecha put Dortmund ahead 2-1 just a minute later, but Vlahović responded to make it 2-2 at 68’. Dortmund then reclaimed the lead through Yann Couto (74′) and Ramy Bensebaini with a penalty (86’).

The match seemed to be decided until Vlahović and Kelly struck, leveling it at 4-4. This match featured eight goals in just 45 minutes, a rare occurrence in the Champions League. It’s only the second time in the competition’s history that eight goals have been scored in a single half; the last instance was last year when Bayern Munich scored eight in one half during a more lopsided victory, ending with a 9-2 scoreline.