Too little too late: Cristiano Ronaldo hits a hat-trick in the league
Reading Time: 2min | Sun. 14.03.21. | 21:20
He never got going in the game that’s seen Juventus crash out of the Champions League, but he turned up for a virtually irrelevant match against Serie A basement side
Even brilliance can lead to frustration. Juventus fans watched their team struggle against Porto in the Champions League Round of 16 clash a few days ago and tonight they’ll be annoyed to see their best-paid star return to goalscoring ways. Cristiano Ronaldo reminded the world of how lethal he can be as he hit a first-half triple but there will be more questions than answers for the former Real Madrid star.
A powerful finish, a towering header and a penalty inside a 22-minute period put Juventus on course to a win against Serie A relegation candidates. You can’t fault the achievement, but one has to ask: where was this sort of performance in the Champions League?
Despite all the talk of the 36-year-old being finished at Juventus and increasing rumours that he may be on his way back to Madrid, Juventus’ sporting director Fabio Paratici has no intention of letting his biggest star leave the club.
"I grew up in a small village where people always spoke in bars and taverns about how football’s best players are actually bad. These days Ronaldo is the subject of such silly stories. It’s ridiculous to say such things about Ronaldo. In 2020 he scored 41 goals in 38 games for Juve. Today is the Serie A top scorer, he has already won many titles. It’s a privilege to have him in the team and we are holding on to him. He is the future of Juventus."
Ronaldo will remain at Juventus Stadium until June, that’s for sure. The season will end with Juventus winning not one trophy. Will a hat-trick in Cagliari do anything to extend Cristiano’s Italian adventure? It seems too little too late.
SERIE A – MATCHDAY 27
Friday
Lazio – Crotone 3-2 (2-1)
/Milinkovic-Savic 14, Luis Alberto 39, Caicedo 84 – Simu 29, 50/
Atalanta - Spezia 3-1 (0-0)
/Pasalic 53, 72, Muriel 55 - Piccoli 81/
Saturday
Sassuolo - Verona 3-2 (1-1)
/Locatelli 4, Djuricic 51, Traore 81 - Lazovic 43, Dimarco 79/
Benevento - Fiorentina 1 - 4 (0-3)
/Ionita 55 - Vlahovic 8, 26, 45, Eyesseric 75/
Genoa - Udinese 1-1 (1-1)
/Pandev 8 - De Paul 30/
Sunday
Bologna - Sampdoria 3-1 (2-1)
/Barrow 27, Svanberg 41, Soriano 70 - Quagliarella 27/
Parma - Roma 2-0 (1-0)
/Mihaila 9, Hernani 55/
Torino - Inter 1-2 (0-0)
/Sanabria 70 - Lukaku 62 pen, Lautaro 85/
Cagliari – Juventus 1-3 (0-3)
/Simeone 61 - Ronaldo 10, 25 pen, 32/
22.45 Milan - Napoli
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