Why is CR7 struggling to shine in Sarri’s Juve?
- Azeem Siddiqui
The Portuguese international once again showed just how good he is in front of the goal as he scored a brilliant hat-trick and guided his national team to a comprehensive 6-0 win over Lithuania in the UEFA Euro 2020 Qualifiers on Thursday.
It was the performance which was a reminder of what the 34-year-old is still capable of in the final third, something which is mysteriously missing from his performances for his club Juventus in the ongoing season.
Ronaldo was substituted for the second time in two matches—only fourth instance in the past decade—in the match against AC Milan at the weekend which left him furious as he went straight down to the locker room in anger.
Juve manager Maurizio Sarri defended his decision of substituting the versatile attacker who according to him was not 100 per cent match fit.
Looking at Ronaldo’s performance for the Old Lady in the recent past, a slight niggle cannot be ruled out which Sarri hinted in the media talk, however just a few days later, the former Manchester United striker showed no sign of uneasiness while being on the national duty which led everyone to question why CR7 is struggling in Sarri’s Juve compared to his national team?
Well, the simplest answer can be that Juve under Sarri is proving to be too one-dimensional where everything is happening from the middle with no or very little pace from the wings which is making it hard for Ronaldo to find space in the final third.
On top of that, the former Real Madrid striker—for once—is playing alongside another ageing striker Gonzalo Higuain, who by no means is getting fitter or faster and is also eager to put his name on the scoring sheet unlike Mario Mandzukic or Karim Benzema who sacrificed their goal-scoring abilities to make room for Ronaldo to score tons of goals.
With that being said and looking at what Ronaldo has achieved in his career, it would be too naive to rule out another spectacular season for the five-time Ballon d'Or winner—at least just yet.
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