Ex-Juventus Chairman Defends Cristiano Ronaldo Signing as a ‘Good Move’ Snubbing Ex-CEO’s Shock Claim

The name Cristiano Ronaldo is associated with a lot of expectations. The player went to Juventus not only with 4 Ballon d’Or titles in his cabinet but also with the hope of winning multiple trophies in Italy. Even though most of it was successful, his time at Juve was deemed below par by former CEO Giuseppe Marotta. However, the $117 million star signing had its own set of positives- enhancing commercial deals with Adidas and Jeep, but for sporting reasons, an ex-chairman of the club also lauded the quality of the CR7 signing.

Ronaldo had left Juventus a year before his contract expired. According to Patrice Evra, the player was being blamed for all the club’s shortcomings, and there was a lack of mutual respect. But paradoxically, the star is being backed by Andrea Agnelli, despite CR7’s supposed cold relationship with Juve.

Agnelli believes a parallel world with no pandemic would have a ‘different story’ of CR7’s Juve spell

Andrea Agnelli was in charge of the club when they signed Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid on a 4-year contract in 2018. And despite the recent complaints by Marotta that CR7 did not meet expectations, Agnelli felt it was the COVID-19 pandemic that was a hindrance. Speaking to the Financial Times, Agnelli stated, “It was a good move. Give me Ronaldo and deploy him without a pandemic; it’s a different story.” The pandemic caused a lot of financial issues for most clubs. But Juventus’ slide on the sporting side was quite debatable.

The closed stadiums and the frequent breaks had affected the club’s performance. However, it could not hinder Cristiano Ronaldo’s productivity. The #7 finished the pandemic season with 31 goals, leading the club to its final Serie A title in the last four years.

However, the star’s refusal to finish out the contract until 2022 left the Old Lady with their UEFA Champions League dream unfulfilled. Cristiano Ronaldo, who had earlier won 5 UCL titles, one of them against Juve in 2017, was expected to help them to European glory. However, that did not seem to materialize, leaving Marotta disappointed.

Ex-CEO Giuseppe Marotta called out Cristiano Ronaldo!

Giuseppe Marotta left Juventus as CEO to join their rivals Inter Milan the same year Cristiano Ronaldo signed for the club. But recently, he opened up about the Portuguese star, claiming that his signing was not as fruitful as was expected. He recently said, “Juventus’ purchase of Cristiano Ronaldo did not bring the expected results. Let’s say that his contribution did not live up to the great expectations that were there when he arrived.”

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Except for not winning the Champions League, CR7’s numbers say otherwise. The player scored 101 goals in 134 games and won two Serie A titles and two POTY awards in 2019 and 2020. However, Juventus, who never lacked in winning the Scudetto, was looking forward to Ronaldo winning the Champions League with them, but that never happened.

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