When Cristiano Ronaldo departed Real Madrid back in 2018, many argued that the Portuguese forward could finally lead Juventus to Champions League glory after several failed attempts since the last time they lifted the trophy back in 1996.
The Old Lady were given a huge brand boost and millions of followers on their official social media accounts, but Ronaldo has not managed to lead them to European glory.
Nonetheless, the Portugal international has been by far their top performer since his arrival almost three years ago and his numbers certainly prove that point.
Having scored 28 times in his debut season, 37 goals in his second campaign and 30 this year, no other Juventus player has managed to even come close to these tallies.
Meanwhile, no other Serie A forward has mustered as many goals as Ronaldo has registered in the last three seasons, where he has netted 75 times.
Ronaldo has not been as effective in Europe where he has scored 14 times in three seasons, but none of his teammates have managed such numbers.
After Ronaldo was at the receiving end of criticism following Juventus’ elimination at the hands of Porto in the Champions League, Juventus sporting director Fabio Paratici stood by his player by highlighting some of his incredible achievements.
“I grew up in a small town and this kind of talk was common in the bar and parish about [Gianni] Rivera, [Roberto] Baggio, [Michel] Platini,” Paratici told Sky Sport Italia.
“He [Ronaldo] scored 41 goals in 38 games in 2020. He’s the top scorer in Serie A and has won five Ballon d’Ors.
“It’s a privilege for us to have Cristiano Ronaldo at Juventus. We enjoy having him. Is he part of our future? He certainly represents it.”
Aged 36, Ronaldo does not seem willing to give in to critics any time soon and after his latest hattrick in Juventus’ 3-1 win over Cagliari last Sunday he took to social media to send a message to those who consider that the superstar is not that far from retirement.
“The future is tomorrow and there’s still a lot to win for Juventus and Portugal!” Ronaldo wrote on Instagram.