Cristiano Ronaldo saved the day for Juventus as he struck twice from the penalty spot in a 3-1 win over Genoa in a Serie A clash on Sunday. The defending champions were in danger of dropping the points for the sixth time in the ongoing season before Ronaldo rescued them.
Fresh from their 3-0 win over Barcelona in Champions League last week, Juventus went ahead in the second half through Paulo Dybala who netted his first goal of the campaign. The first half ended goalless before Dybala struck into the bottom-right corner for the opener in the 57th minute.
However, former Juventus midfielder Stefano Sturaro equalised four minutes later thanks to a cross from Luca Pellegrini. The contest seemed headed for a draw before Nicolo Rovella fouled Juan Cuadrado in the danger zone and Ronaldo stepped up to convert te resulting spot-kick.
Genoa then conceded another penalty with a minute before the full-time when Alvaro Morata was felled by a clumsy tackle from Mattia Perin. Ronaldo did the rest.
Dybala later addressed the speculations regarding his future with the Serie A giants after his start to the season was marred by fitness and form concerns. He hit out at reports that claimed talks over his contract extension have been postponed after dip in performance.
“So many things that aren’t true have been said in relation to my contract,” Dybala told Sky Sport. “My agent was in Turin for a long time and was never called up by the club. It disappoints me to hear talk of invested financial figures.”
“It would be better if the truth could be told, because talking about those aspects in this period pits the fans against me, with all the love I have for Juventus,” he added.
Juventus next face Atlanta on Wednesday wile Genoa face AC Milan.