Cristiano Ronaldo turns 34 on Tuesday. Usually strikers start fading at that age. Maybe they lose a step of pace or that passion burns a little less. But three days shy of another Ronaldo birthday, the Juventus forward is still as hungry as ever for goals.
Ronaldo netted two goals and added an assist in a wild 3-3 draw against Parma on Saturday. They weren't goals that will make fans leap out of their seats in awe like 31-year-old Lionel Messi’s on Saturday, but they perfectly illustrated why Ronaldo is one of the greatest goal scorers of all time.
Juventus welcomed Parma to Allianz Stadium on Saturday. The Bianconeri were coming off a surprising 3-0 defeat to Atalanta in the Italian Cup, ending a run of four straight titles in the competition for the Old Lady. Ronaldo played the full 90 minutes in the defeat, the first time Juventus had been shut out all season.
The Bianconeri racked up a staggering 17 shots in the first half, but just four hit the target. Fortunately for the home side, one went in, thanks to the determination of Ronaldo.
In the 36th minute, Blaise Matuidi slipped the ball to Ronaldo in the box. The Portuguese striker briefly lost his balance, but stuck with it to put a shot on target. The ball took a couple deflections on the way in, but Ronaldo won’t care.
Cristiano Ronaldo slipped, but still scored! 1-0! pic.twitter.com/3KbDKxqDk8
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) February 2, 2019
But one goal wasn't enough for Ronaldo (or Juve). Daniele Rugani put the Bianconeri up 2-0 in the 62nd minute (technically assisted by Ronaldo though he wasn't really trying to pass it) only for Antonino Barilla to pull one back for Parma two minutes later.
So Ronaldo restored the two-goal advantage, showing more fight (and jumping ability) to reach a cross from Mario Mandzukic to make it 3-1 in the 66th minute.
Cristiano Ronaldo gets UP for his second goal of the day. Juventus leads Parma 3-2 now, looking to stay undefeated in Serie A (via @ESPNFC) pic.twitter.com/Zya2Ua1bCK
— Planet Fútbol (@si_soccer) February 2, 2019
Ronaldo now leads Serie A with 17 goals and has 19 total for Juventus this season.
Not a bad Ronaldo birthday gift for the man who only wants goals (and women, and money, and fame, and prestige, and underwear).
But the output wasn't enough to secure three points as the Juventus defense was breached twice more by Gervinho, who scored in the 74th minute and again in the 93rd in the 3-3 draw.
Juventus remained unbeaten on the Serie A season, but failed to win for the third time in league play. With Napoli's win earlier in the day, the Old Lady's Serie A lead was trimmed to nine.
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