Juventus took the field Sunday knowing just what they needed to do to get back into the top four in the race of UEFA Champions League places in the Italian Serie A.
For 80 minutes or so, Juventus were extremely poor. Their play was slow, laboured and they were creating little. Udinese entered the match with four losses in their last six games but were keeping Juventus in check, comfortably.
On the same day, Inter Milan officially clinched the Scudetto and ended Juve’s nine consecutive Serie A league title run.
Then, it all changed. For the better, too.
Cristiano Ronaldo saved Juventus and perhaps Andrea Pirlo’s job after scoring twice to help the Bianconeri record a 2-1 comeback win over Udinese.
They entered the game after Atalanta had dropped points to give them the chance to go equal on points with them. Five teams are fighting for the last three Champions League spots in Serie A and Juve is one of them.
The Bianconeri need to win their remaining games to ensure that they have a place in the UEFA Champions League next season.
Udinese took the lead in the game and held on past the 80th-minute mark.
Within the span of six minutes, Juventus turned the game completely around. It all began with a Cristiano Ronaldo freekick that went off the wall and hit Rodrigo De Paul’s hand, which gifted Juve a penalty that the Portuguese superstar converted.
Man for the big moments – Cristiano Ronaldo (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)
He then scored a header in the 86th minute to put Juventus in front as they pulled a rabbit out of the hat and pick up an important 2-1 win over Udinese at the Dacia Arena.
A totally undeserved win, but a win nonetheless. Three points were needed, and three points are what they got.
Even as the announcers were hammering home how this could very well be Andrea Pirlo’s final game as manager, Ronaldo’s willingness to win finally proved enough to lead the former champions to a victory.
Ronaldo was quiet for most of the game, but he eventually delivered and Calciomercato hailed him for singlehandedly bringing all the points home.
They rated him 7/10: “He simply didn’t look like CR7 for about 83 minutes, then he comes back.
“It is released from the spot, but until the moment of the free-kick deflected by De Paul’s elbow, it had been another abundantly disappointing test. Then he thanks Scuffet and Rabiot, doubling and finding the smile again.”
In the Serie A table, Atalanta, Juventus and AC Milan are all on 69 points in 2nd, 3rd and 4th, respectively.
With just 4 games to play and Napoli and Lazio also in with a chance to qualify, teams cannot afford to drop points or else they will miss out on playing football in Europe’s premier club competition, next season.
