Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri was frustrated post-match on Tuesday after watching an opportunity slip away.

Massimiliano Allegri rued a missed opportunity after Juventus failed to clinch a Champions League last-16 berth by drawing at Sporting CP.

Juventus had the chance to secure their passage through to the knockout round but the Italian champions stuttered to a 1-1 draw away from home on Tuesday.

Allegri`s men were fortunate to escape with a point after Gonzalo Higuain struck 11 minutes from the end to cancel out Bruno Cesar`s first-half opener in Group D.

Runners-up last season, Juve are second in the group, three points adrift of Barcelona but only three ahead of Sporting with two matchdays remaining.

"It`s a shame – we`ve not managed to put it beyond doubt. It`s still all to play for, with another two tough games to go," Allegri said.

Allegri added: "It was a poor first half. Even after the goal there was no reaction from us – we didn`t spring back into life.

"It was better after the interval. The changes around the 70th minute provided more dynamism, as you`d expect, but even once we`d equalised we weren`t very slick in our play.

"We had time to try and turn the game in our favour, but we didn`t do so.

"There clearly needs to be an element of fear to bring the best out of us. We`ll take tonight`s result and we`ll think about approaching Benevento with respect and focus on winning that game."

Argentine forward Higuain was the hero again for Juve, having struck twice in last week`s 2-0 victory over AC Milan in Serie A.

"It was tough. Barcelona won here with an own goal, they started strong and it`s an important point. Now we need to recover and prepare for Sunday," Higuain told Mediaset Premium.

"The important thing was not to lose against a great side, we still have a three-point advantage over them and hope to secure qualification in the next two rounds.

"I always try my best to help the team. We picked up an important point in a difficult arena."