‘We are confident’: Juve boss Allegri says Ronaldo set to win Ajax Champions League fitness battle
Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri says he is “confident” that Cristiano Ronaldo will have recovered from a thigh injury in time to face Ajax in the Champions League quarter-final first leg in Amsterdam on Wednesday.
Ronaldo sat out Juve’s win over AC Milan on Saturday as he continues his rehabilitation from the thigh injury he picked up while on national team duty with Portugal at the end of March.
But Allegri said after the Serie A win on Saturday that he was “confident” of his star forward being available for selection for the crunch midweek game.
“He [Ronaldo] always feels ready, but I told him to rest [against Milan],” the Italian manager said.
“We are confident of having him at Ajax on Wednesday.”
With their top scorer absent, Juve still managed to come from behind thanks to a second-half penalty from Paulo Dybala and a late strike from teenager Moise Kean.
The 19-year-old emerged from a week in which he was racially abused to produce a match-winning cameo from the substitutes’ bench, showing the huge potential the young Italian forward has, as well as undeniable mental fortitude.
Also on rt.com ‘He’s gonna be a superstar’: 19yo Juve striker Kean nets for 5th straight game in win over AC MilanThe win put Juve 21 points clear at the top of Serie A, and they need just one more win to clinch an eighth successive Scudetto.
They could even be crowned champions as early as Sunday night, should second-placed Napoli lose to Genoa.
But the title the Turin giants truly crave is the Champions League, having waited more than two decades to taste glory at the top of European football.
The Old Lady have been the bridesmaids five times in finals since they last won the Champions League ins 1996, and signed serial winner Ronaldo in the summer largely with an eye on the Portuguese star helping fire them to glory.
Also on rt.com 'It would be nice to still have him here': Messi admits he misses Ronaldo rivalryHe has already dug them out of a massive hole by netting a hat-trick in the last 16 second leg against Atletico Madrid, which helped Juve overturn a 2-0 deficit from the first game.
In Ajax, Juve will be facing a young, dynamic team who dumped out holders Real Madrid in a huge shock in their last 16 clash.
The Dutch side warmed up for their mid-week showdown with the Italian club by hammering Willem II 4-1 in the Eredivisie on Saturday.
Juventus will need Ronaldo fully fit and firing on all cylinders to avoid an upset such as the one that befell his former club in the last round.
