Cristiano Ronaldo Warned of Tough Goalscoring Conditions in Italy by Raul Albiol
Cristiano Ronaldo will find it tough to score 40 goals per season now that he has swapped Real Madrid for Juventus, according to Napoli's Raul Albiol.
The Portuguese superstar has yet to get off the mark for the Old Lady, and Albiol, a former Los Blancos team-mate of Ronaldo's, has warned the five-time Ballon d'Or winner he may not be quite as prolific now he is playing in Serie A, per AS (h/t Goal's Chris Burton):
"It's true that in Italy, football is more tactical and defensive, as well as being very physical, so you have to know how to play. Cristiano's a great player with tremendous quality, but in Italy it'll be harder for him to score 40 goals. Also, I hope he doesn't because it would be good for Juventus but bad for Napoli."
TOP NEWS
Madrid Fines Players $590K 😲
'Mbappé Out' Petition Gaining Steam 😳
Star-Studded World Cup Ad 🤩
Ronaldo, 33, moved to Juve for £99.2 million back in July to end a nine-season spell at Real during which he netted 450 goals:
That is a staggering average of 50 goals per season, and Juventus will be hoping he can produce a similar return in 2018-19 and beyond.
After three Serie A appearances Ronaldo has yet to find the back of the net, although he has provided an assist as Juve have made a perfect start to their title defence.
It is too early for there to be any major concerns that Ronaldo will not re-find his goalscoring form.
The Portugal international did not score in La Liga last term until his fourth appearance and had only four goals in the Spanish top flight at the turn of the year.
He ended up with 26 league goals for the campaign and also scored 15 times as Real won a third successive UEFA Champions League.
Ronaldo has not travelled with Portugal during the international break so should be fresh on Sunday when Juve host Sassuolo.
If he fails to score again talk will continue about whether Ronaldo will struggle in Serie A, and Albiol's comments will be given added credence.
But there is precedent for Ronaldo making a slow start to the season, and he could well still be prolific later in the campaign.
