Cristiano Ronaldo stunned the world when he left Real Madrid in 2018, despite winning the Champions League that year. He left Spain to join Serie A giants, Juventus. The move back then was a sign of the club’s strength, notably making them contenders for UCL glory.

Given the positive feedback this move received, few would have expected Juventus to go on a downward spiral. While the club did win 2 Scudetto’s, alongside a series of other trophies; the former Real Madrid winger could not work his magic to his full potential.

Notably, after failing to bring Champions League glory to Italy, Ronaldo’s move to Juve is now considered a rather unsuccessful phase in his career.

“Taken for granted” – Leonardo Bonucci on Cristiano Ronaldo

Ahead of Juventus’ Champions League clash against Chelsea, Leonardo Bonucci sat down for an interview with the Athletic. Speaking about Ronaldo, the Italian defender reiterated the Portuguese’ influence on the team. He said, “Cristiano’s presence had a big influence on us. Just training with him gave us something extra but subconsciously players started to think his presence alone was enough to win games.” 

Bonucci pointed out how he felt that the Juventus players took Ronaldo’s presence for granted. “We began to fall a little short in our daily work. The humility, the sacrifice, the desire to be there for your teammate day after day. Over the last few years, I think you could see that,” he said.

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Cristiano needed the team at Juventus

Despite his great record in Serie A, Bonucci feels CR7 was as much a part of the squad as his teammates were. “Maybe it was taken for granted that if we gave the ball to Cristiano, he’d win us the game. But Cristiano needed the team as much as we needed him.”

With Cristiano having returned to Manchester United, Juventus will have to rebuild without his support. Notably, so far, things are not looking good for the Turin giants, as they linger in 10th place in Serie A.

Do you think Juventus made a mistake buying, let alone selling, Cristiano Ronaldo?

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