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Real Madrid beat Juventus 1-0 thanks to a Jude Bellingham strike in the 58th minute, but it was Arda Guler who led the way for the hosts.
The game also brought a much-watched “Turkish duel” as Guler started for Madrid while Kenan Yildiz led Juventus out as captain; both began in the first eleven and left in the mid-second half.
Guler was selected as man of the match—the post-game award for the standout player—after he stayed on the front foot for 74 minutes.
He completed 69 of 71 passes for a 97% success rate and delivered seven key passes, the final balls that set up shots.
He also went six-for-six on long passes, kept a perfect dribble record, and recovered 10 loose balls, which helped Madrid keep pressure and close space.
The midfielder touched the ball 96 times and shaped play from deep to wide, sending in 11 crosses, with six finding teammates. He attempted two shots, drew two fouls, won six of 11 ground duels, and won his only aerial contest.
These figures, taken together, showed why voters picked him as the game’s best performer.
On the other side, Kenan Yildiz wore the armband for Juventus and battled through the same rhythm before coming off in the 75th minute.
His leadership framed the narrative that saw two Türkiye internationals go head-to-head on Europe’s biggest club stage.
With this result, Madrid made it three wins from three in the Champions League league phase to move to nine points, while Juventus remained on two.
The narrow margin underlined how one moment decided the scoreline, yet the flow of play highlighted Guler’s control and clarity on the ball.
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