Juventus closed in on a second Champions League final in three seasons as Gonzalo Higuain struck twice to beat Monaco in the semi-final first leg. The French hosts started brightly, with Kylian Mbappe heading at Gianluigi Buffon before forcing another low save. But Higuain ruthlessly finished two fine Dani Alves assists, sweeping the Brazilian's back heel in on 29 minutes. Radamel Falcao went close for Monaco after the break before Alves' measured cross saw Higuain put Juve in control.
After Real Madrid's comprehensive first-leg win over city rivals Atletico on Tuesday, it now looks almost certain the two teams in Cardiff on 3 June will form a repeat of the 1998 final, in which the Spanish side beat Juve 1-0. It will prove fitting, as the two sides sport the only unbeaten records in this season's competition. Monaco, free scoring and dangerous with their youthful side all season, showed moments of threat which could unnerve Juve in the second leg on 9 May. But at Stade Louis II, Massimiliano Allegri's side showed just how efficient they can be and Monaco's task looks huge as Juve have not lost a home fixture by two goals since April 2013.
This was another victory built on organized defensive work, with Buffon making a couple of key saves to help usher in a ninth Juve clean sheet in 11 Champions League matches this season. Buffon's low stop from 18-year-old Mbappe inside 10 minutes illustrated the narrative this fixture threw up as experience met youthful exuberance. Allegri's squad boasted almost three times as many Champions League appearances in total than their hosts, who are seeking a first final appearance since 2004. The Italian side sat deep for spells, hitting Monaco with a flowing move for the opener before pouncing to rob Tiemoue Bakayoko deep in his own half ahead of the second.
Buffon's low save from Falcao at 1-0 underlined the resistance Monaco faced. Ultimately the experience Buffon said would be crucial before kick-off shone through as his side squeezed the life from Monaco, preventing the Ligue 1 leaders from scoring at home for the first time since November 2015.
