Andrea Pirlo says he will evaluate if Cristiano Ronaldo should be in the wall after free-kick slip-up
Juventus manager Andrea Pirlo has explained that he will evaluate Cristiano Ronaldo’s error, which led to Parma scoring against the Bianconeri. The Old Lady eased past Parma in the Serie A to climb back up to third in the league table, but Cristiano Ronaldo once again made the headlines.
Parma were given a free-kick in the 25th minute and Gaston Brugman’s strike from the dead ball situation found the back of the net. Brugman’s free-kick may not have hit the target had Cristiano Ronaldo jumped like the rest of the wall.
Ronaldo hasn’t exactly been a media darling in Italy in recent weeks as the Portuguese’s future has been the subject of speculation. The player's tantrums on the pitch haven’t done him any favors.
“Unfortunately, these things happen, but we’ll evaluate it over the next few days,” Pirlo said when asked about Cristiano Ronaldo’s decision not to jump.
Juventus were comfortable despite Parma’s opener after Cristiano Ronaldo's error
The hosts were largely comfortable in the game against Parma, barring the free-kick. The Bianconeri bounced back to equalize just before half-time and took the lead soon after in the second half.
Even though Cristiano Ronaldo failed to get on the score-sheet yet again, a brace from Alex Sandro and a Matthijs de Ligt strike meant Juventus made light-work of Parma.
Pirlo admitted the hosts played well after the opening goal and said the win will help their confidence in the final stretch of the season.
“We made life difficult for ourselves with the opening goal. We then ran a few other risks on set plays and it’s a pity because we had done well defending from dead ball situations this season," said Pirlo. “We did well to turn it around and the win was important for our confidence as we played well and needed to take home the three points."
Juventus are still not guaranteed a finish inside the top four as Napoli and Lazio are not too far behind in the league table. The Bianconeri will return to fourth place should Atalanta win their game against AS Roma on Thursday.