Pirlo hits out at 'timid' Juventus after shocking Ajax elimination

Andrea Pirlo has hit out at his former side Juventus, saying they were "timid and timorous" in their Champions League exit at the hands of Ajax. 

Juve entered Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final second leg with the advantage, having secured a 1-1 draw at Ajax in the first leg last week. 

Cristiano Ronaldo gave his side a further edge when he opened the scoring with a header in the 28th minute on Tuesday. 

But from there, things went south for the Italian champions, who conceded an equaliser to Donny van de Beek just eight minutes later. 

With the tie level, Ajax showed more of the initiative and were rewarded with a second goal on 67 minutes, with Matthijs de Ligt grabbing a vital header for the visitors.

The Dutch side would hold on from there, booking a place in the semi-final with a surprise 3-2 aggregate win. 

Pirlo, who starred for Juve between 2011 and 2015, felt his former side looked tired and timid, while calling out two of their top performers. 

“Juve did well for the first half-hour, when pushing them high and forcing Ajax to play the long ball," Pirlo told Sky Italia. 

“After the equaliser, I saw Juve too timid and timorous, especially in players who ought to have character like [Miralem] Pjanic and [Federico] Bernardeschi, who looked tired."

Ajax advanced to the semi-final for the first time since 1996-97, where they will take on either Manchester City or Tottenham.