Champions League 2019-20: 3 talking points from Juventus's 3-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen

It was just another day in the office for Juventus as they steamrolled to a 3-0 win past Bayer Leverkusen at the Allianz Stadium.

The visitors came into the fixture with a morale-boosting 3-0 away victory over Augsburg in the Bundesliga over the weekend and would have been looking to get their Champions League campaign back on track after they lost on matchday 1 to Lokomotiv Moscow. However, there was to be no respite for them as goals from Gonzalo Higuain, Federico Bernadeschi and Cristiano Ronaldo handed the Bianconeri all three points in what was a routine victory for the Italians.

The win sees Maurizio Sarri's men move to the summit of Group D alongside Atletico Madrid on four points, and puts them in good stead ahead of their blockbuster clash with Inter Milan in Serie A this weekend.

Here, we look at three talking points from the match:

#3 Gonzalo Higuain delivers a vintage performance

The past year has been one to forget for Gonzalo Higuain. Having been offloaded by Juventus following the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo, he then underwent unproductive loan spells at first AC Milan and then Chelsea.

His return to Turin was unheralded and there were numerous reports that the club wanted to get rid of him. But they seemingly didn't get suitable bids for the former Argentine international, and he stayed put.

Sarri's arrival at Juventus portended a new lease of life for Higuain. It was under Sarri's management that Higuain played his best football, scoring 36 goals during the 2015-16 season to break Gunnar Nordahl's 66-year record for most goals in a Serie A season.

So far, the former Real Madrid man has featured prominently for Sarri, appearing in all eight fixtures for Juventus. And though his return of one goal from six Serie A matches is on the low side, the 31-year-old has impressed with his general application.

Against Leverkusen, Higuain was deployed from the start as the focal point of attack and he gave a positive performance, scoring one goal and assisting another.

The manner in which he scored the opener on the night would have been pleasing to fans of the Bianconeri, as it drew flashbacks to the Higuain of old who tormented defenses across Italy.

He took a brilliant first touch to set himself up before rifling low into the bottom corner from 20 yards to put the home side ahead in the 17th minute. Leverkusen goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky denied Higuain from adding to his goal tally with brilliant saves on two occasions.

He would however still have a further say in the fixture, as he showed great control and nimble feet to square for Bernadeschi to put Juventus 2-0 up. He could have had a couple more assists but for some uncharacteristic poor finishing from Ronaldo.

Juventus are pushing for glory on multiple fronts this season, and if they are to achieve their lofty ambitions, they would need Higuain to keep up with the impressive form he showed today.

#2 Bayer Leverkusen's Champions League hopes hanging in the balance

Given the size and caliber of players available at Juventus and Atletico Madrid, it is no surprise that both sides are overwhelming favorites to progress in Group D ahead of Bayer Leverkusen and Lokomotiv Moscow.

That said, the Germans have some impressive players of their own including Jonathan Tah, Kai Havertz, Leon Bailey, Kevin Volland, and Kerem Demirbay and would have been looking to capitalize on any slip-up from the top two.

However, a shock home loss to Lokomotiv Moscow on matchday 1 derailed their campaign, and a second defeat to Juventus has left them with a mountain to climb if they are to progress to the knockout rounds.

Peter Bosz's men are currently last in the group, with their hopes of even dropping down into the Europa League facing serious threat. They would have to start posting positive results starting from matchday 3 if they are to retain any hopes of staying in Europe beyond December.

#1 Cristiano Ronaldo, the record-breaker

Ronaldo scored against a 33rd different Champions League team

en the alacrity with which he has set and broken records throughout his career, it usually comes as something of a surprise to hear that there are still any records left to be broken by Cristiano Ronaldo - particularly in the Champions League.

With 127 goals (and counting), the Portuguese superstar is by far the most lethal marksman in the history of Europe's most prestigious club competition. And against Bayer Leverkusen, he once more set his name in the record books.

When he netted in the 88th minute, it meant that Ronaldo had scored against 33 different clubs in the Champions League, equaling the mark set by the legendary Real Madrid icon Raul Gonzalez.

A breakdown of the 33 clubs reveals that current employers Juventus are ironically the club he has scored most against (10 goals), with Lyon the club he has faced the most times (four goals from 10 matches).

Furthermore, Ronaldo has had the most luck against German clubs as he has scored 27 times against teams from the country, with Bayern Munich (nine goals), Schalke 04 (seven goals) and Borussia Dortmund (seven goals) making up the bulk of the tally.

However, Barcelona have been the toughest nut for him to crack, as he has faced the Catalans on five occasions in the Champions League (three times with Manchester United and twice with Real Madrid) but is yet to find the back of the net.

Ronaldo has his great rival Lionel Messi just behind him with 32 teams scored against, and the Argentine has an opportunity to match him and Raul when Barcelona host Inter Milan later today.

However, matchday 3 would also offer an opportunity for Ronaldo to claim the record all for himself as he is yet to face Lokomotiv Moscow in the Champions League.

Edited by Musab Abid