Cristiano Ronaldo's Hat-Trick Leads Juventus to Win vs. Cagliari in Serie A

Cristiano Ronaldo netted his first Serie A hat-trick as Juventus beat Cagliari 4-0 on Monday to move top of the table in Italy. 

Cagliari defended well in the first half to keep the hosts out in Turin, but four minutes after the break, Ronaldo put his side ahead after taking advantage of a defensive mistake.

The Portuguese superstar then netted from the penalty spot after the excellent Paulo Dybala was fouled in the box by Marko Rog before setting up Gonzalo Higuain for Juve's third 10 minutes from time.

One minute later, Ronaldo completed his treble with an accomplished finish, and Inter Milan will now need a victory over Napoli to reclaim the top spot when they play later Monday. 

Juve eventually got the strong opening to the year manager Maurizio Sarri would have wanted, but they looked to be suffering from a festive hangover at the start of proceedings Monday.

Dybala and Aaron Ramsey were both off target with early efforts, and Merih Demiral headed against the crossbar.

But Cagliari were fairly comfortable in keeping Juventus out in the first half despite being starved of possession:

All their good work was undone, though, when Ronaldo pounced on Ragnar Klavan's sloppy back-pass in the 49th minute, rounded goalkeeper Robin Olsen and scored his first goal of 2020:

Wojciech Szczesny kept Juve in the lead when he saved from Giovanni Simeone on the hour, and six minutes later, Dybala's silky footwork in the penalty area bamboozled Rog, who could only foul the Argentinian as he attempted to stop him.

Ronaldo placed the ball on the spot and sent Olsen the wrong way to all but wrap up the points.

The former Real Madrid man was not done, though. 

In the 81st minute, he fed substitute Higuain down the left flank, the striker cut inside onto his right foot and his deflected shot nestled in the back of the net.

Seconds later, Douglas Costa then surged through the middle, found Ronaldo on the edge of the box, and the five-time Ballon d'Or winner completed a landmark hat-trick from six yards despite a heavy first touch:

Ronaldo has now scored eight times in his last five Serie A appearances, an ominous sign for the rest of the Italian top flight. 

What's Next?

Juve are back in action Sunday when they visit Roma in Serie A after Cagliari host AC Milan on Saturday.