Serie A 2018/19: Cristiano Ronaldo rested for Juventus' trip to Genoa
After he put three past Jan Oblak and Atletico Madrid on Tuesday evening in the UEFA Champions League, Cristiano Ronaldo will be given the weekend off to rest and recover.
Juventus travel to the Stadio Luigi Ferraris to take on Genoa in Serie A action on Sunday, but will be without the Portuguese superstar. On Saturday, the club announced their squad for the match and there was one glaring omission. It is expected that the 34-year-old will remain in Turin over the weekend and watch his team play from home.
His absence on Sunday will be a blow to his hopes to win the Capocannoniere - awarded annually to Serie A's top goalscorer. He currently sits tied with Milan's Krzysztof Piatek on 19 goals for the second most in the Italian top flight. Sampdoria's Fabio Quagliarella leads the league with 20 goals. Both Piatek and Quagliarella are expected to play this weekend.
The Bianconeri are dominating their domestic competition this season, currently sitting 18 points ahead of second place Napoli and have their sights firmly set on Champions League glory. We will likely see Ronaldo rested a lot more throughout the remainder of the campaign as Massimiliano Allegri looks to keep him fresh for Europe's most prestigious club competition.
Juventus were drawn alongside Ajax in the Champions League quarter-finals and could meet either Tottenham or Manchester City in the semi-finals if they get past the Dutch giants.
Ronaldo won't be the only one missing in action for Juventus, with Douglas Costa, Mattia De Sciglio, Juan Cuadrado, Andrea Barzagli and Sami Khedira all still out injured.
While Mario Mandzukic was forced to exit the game against Atletico on Tuesday, he will be making the trip to Genoa.
The complete Juventus squad named for Sunday's game: Szczesny, Chiellini, Caceres, Pjanic, Dybala, Alex Sandro, Matuidi, Mandzukic, Kean, Bonucci, Cancelo, Pinsoglio, Perin, Emre Can, Rugani, Bentancur, Bernardeschi, Spinazzola, Nicolussi Caviglia, Moreno.