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27.06.2019 » Is Ronaldo still going to break more records?
Five years ago, in the summer of 2014, just after the World Cup in Brazil, Cristiano Ronaldo was in LA with Real Madrid. Meanwhile he was attempting to throw a ball for the baseball team of the LA Dodgers, who these days are surprisingly favourites in the odds to win the World Series, at the same time he prepared himself for what would be 5 amazing seasons. Just in the past five years, CR7 won 3 back to back Champions League with Real Madrid, two international European titles with his native national team Portugal and he switched clubs, winning already a Serie A for Juventus. And during this period, he kept breaking individual records and he won the Ballon d'Or in 2016 and 2017. Now at 34 years of age, what is next to complete this amazing career?
Cristiano Ronaldo - All his 28 goals for Juventus
New coach, new life
The new season is rapidly approaching and it's shaping up to be a big one for Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates, on both a domestic and international front; on both sides, the pressure will fall on Ronaldo's shoulders, but if anyone is big enough and good enough to handle the intense scrutiny, then it's him. Time and time again, he's dragged his teams across the finishing lines, and it is highly plausible he'll do it all again in 2020.
It's all change in Turin with Massimiliano Allegri leaving his post as Juventus manager after a highly successful – though Champions League barren – five years in charge. During that time, the club won five consecutive Serie A titles (making it eight in total) and four Coppa Italia's with Ronaldo starring in their latest league triumph with 21 goals and eight assists in his first season in Italian football.
The incoming gaffer, Maurizio Sarri, who has arrived after a one year stint at Chelsea, has a fantastic reputation in his home country following his time with Napoli and in Juve he will be expected to make it nine titles on the bounce.
Still, surprisingly, Sarri has only won one title during his 20 years as a coach and it was an Europa League last season for Chelsea. Thankfully, Sarri has the greatest of all time at his disposal – that should give him a helping hand to build a team that's near immovable.
Sarri has already declared Ronaldo as "another step" above the players he's coached in the past and he wasted no time in dangling a carrot to his new star man in the form of a goal scoring challenge – to set an Italian record for a single season. That's something Ronaldo will embrace and it's highly likely come May 2020 we're talking about yet another line in the history books that belongs to Ronaldo.
More records about to be broken...
Whilst a Serie A win is the minimum expectation, the real prize is the UEFA Champions League, which has evaded Juventus' grasp since the mid-90s with their last final appearance ending in defeat at the hands of Real Madrid. Who were inspired by a two goal, man of the match display from – you guessed it – Ronaldo.
Last season was a disappointment on the European front for everyone at Juve and even Ronaldo acknowledged it – "this is why they brought me" – when pressed on the importance of glory in the biggest club competition in the world. Perhaps under Sarri, Juventus can finally get over the line again.
Ronaldo, who is currently enjoying a break in the Mediterranean, has already proved his worth off the field, as his presence at the Allianz Arena seems to have been enough to convince hot property, such as Paul Pogba and Matthijs De Ligt, to push for moves to join him. If Sarri can get those deals signed, then the odds of success will tumble dramatically with the bookies and Ronaldo would have played his part without kicking a ball.
On the field, he's secured more history by leading his national team, Portugal, to Nations League success in the inaugural tournament and he'll be hoping for another summer of silverware in 12 months time when the European Championships take place.
Ronaldo was the standout man in 2016 when Portugal defeated France in the final with a solitary goal scored by Éder in extra time, enough to see Ronaldo hold aloft the first major honour in Portugal's history.
Next season's competition could feasibly be Ronaldo's last European Championships as a player - he'll be 39 by the time the 2024 version comes around – and it wouldn't surprise a single soul to watch him sign off in style.
He might be eager to challenge the Iranian Ali Daei, who still holds the record for more international goals with 109. Ronaldo shortened the distance with the hattrick over Switzerland in early June and he has now 88 goals for Portugal, just 21 left to overcome Ali Daei. Will he be able to do it?
Author: Ashley Munson
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Juventus is for the ICC on July 21 of 2019, against Tottenham. You can watch Juventus vs Spurs, Colombia vs Chile, Venezuela vs Argentina, Brazil vs, Uruguay vs Peru, and Borussia Dortmund vs Schweinberg, all matches provided from our live soccer streaming game pages.
Juventus next game:
Juventus vs Tottenham kick-off time (21-07-2019):
Beijing (China) | UTC/GMT+8: 19:30
Jakarta (Indonesia) | UTC/GMT+7: 18:30
India (New Delhi) | UTC/GMT+5.30: 17:00
Italy (Turin) | UTC/GMT+2: 13:30
Spain (Madrid) | UTC/GMT+2: 13:30
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | UTC/GMT+1: 12:30
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | UTC/GMT-3: 08:30
New York (United States) | UTC/GMT-4: 07:30
Los Angeles (United States) | UTC/GMT-7: 04:30
Sources: ronaldo7.net / joe.ie / espn.com / uefa.com
