Cannot accept anything less than excellence, says Cristiano Ronaldo after Juve's shock defeat

TURIN: Juventus striker Cristiano Ronaldo on Wednesday issued a rallying call, saying that nothing less than excellence is accepted on the football pitch.

Ronaldo's remarks came as Juventus suffered a shock 3-0 defeat to Fiorentina on Tuesday and thus losing their unbeaten start to the Serie A season.

Dusan Vlahovic strike, an Alex Sandro own goal and a Martin Caceres effort resulted in Juventus' 3-0 loss in the Serie A on Tuesday.

"Yesterday, with a poor performance and a result far from acceptable, we closed our scheduled games for 2020, a special year in many particular ways. Empty stadiums, COVID protocols, postponed games, long stoppages and a very tight calendar," Ronaldo wrote on Instagram.

"But this is no excuse for anything. We know that we have to give more of ourselves, in order to play better and to win in a more consistent way. We are Juventus! And we simply cannot accept anything less than excellence on the pitch," he added.

Ronaldo also said that the side would now return stronger next year and the side will give their everything in every game.

"I hope this short stoppage may help us to come back stronger and more united than ever, because the season is still far from over and in the end we believe that we will, once again, celebrate with our tiffosi. Believe in us, trust our team as much as we trust you, and we will deliver," said Ronaldo.

Juventus will now return to action on January 3 against Udinese in the Serie A. The side is currently at the fourth spot in the standings with 24 points from 13 matches. 

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