Cristiano Ronaldo Praises Quality of Serie A, Says He Doesn't Miss Real Madrid
March 12, 2019
Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo has said Serie A is the toughest league he has played in but that he isn't missing life at Real Madrid.
Ronaldo made a surprise move from the Spanish capital to Turin in the summer and has enjoyed a strong start to his time at Juventus, netting 19 goals in the Italian top flight so far.
While the striker has made scoring look effortless in Italy at times, speaking to DAZN (h/t Football Italia), the Portugal international said he's found it a challenge to get chances so far:
"I'm happy to be in Italy and such a competitive league. My experience has been very good so far. I feel good about myself. I feel suited to the Italian league, and it's a difficult league to play in. In my opinion, it's the hardest for attackers. It's a league with a lot of quality. I didn't expect the Italian league to have so much quality."
Ronaldo also said he doesn't miss living in the Spanish capital, as he's become used to adapting to life in different countries throughout his playing career:
"I'm happy; my family and children are happy. Everything is positive. We've settled well; my family loves Italy. ... It's not difficult for me to adapt to a different country or culture. I don't miss Spain or Portugal. Things are as they are. Obviously, I left behind a lot of friends; I left a big club. I left a club who gave me a lot of love, fans, friends. ... However, I don't miss the country because I have the same things here. It wasn't hard for me."
Ronaldo enjoyed tremendous success in Spain, as he helped Real Madrid win four UEFA Champions League titles in the previous five years.
The previous three, which all came in succession, were won under the guidance of Zinedine Zidane, who was appointed for the second time by Madrid on Monday. In his press conference, Zidane was asked about possibly bringing Ronaldo back to the club:
However, the Portuguese appears to be content with life in Turin and has been a consistent source of goals for his team this season:
With Juventus poised to romp to the Serie A title in 2018-19, the club will be desperate to go far in the UEFA Champions League, too. They will need to pull off a big comeback against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday, though.
Juventus head to Turin having won the first leg of their last-16 showdown 2-0 at a lively Wanda Metropolitano:
Although Juventus would not have wanted to be in this kind of situation, in Ronaldo, they arguably have the ideal player to deal with it.
The former Real man is the highest scorer in Champions League history and has typically excelled when it comes to the knockout stages of the competition. If he can fire Juventus into the quarter-finals, it would be among his best achievements in the tournament.