TheCable

Juventus manager, Massimiliano Allegri, has revealed that new signing from Real Madrid, Cristiano Ronaldo, will make his Serie A debut in the season opener against Chievo on Saturday.

The 51-year old coach made this known while fielding questions from reporters at his first conference of the season.

“Cristiano will make his Serie A debut for us tomorrow,” he said.

Allegri, who rejected advances from both Real Madrid and Arsenal in the summer, confirmed that the £98 million former Real Madrid goal machine will be in the starting lineup.

But he warned his team against complacency due to the presence of a player who scored 450 goals in nine seasons in Spain, averaging over 40 goals in the past eight seasons.

“Cristiano is no ordinary footballer. His career statistics are testament to that. He brings added value to our team, but we must not rest on our laurels and believe that we’ll win games just because we have him on our side,” the former Livorno coach said.

The surprise signing of the five-time Balon d’Or winner has been seen as a real coup for the serial league winners, with the deal seen as potentially seeing Juve win the UEFA Champions League this season.

“You can’t call this the ‘year of the Champions League’ unless we reach the final like we did in 2015 and 2017. In order to get there, we must keep working every day to take our game to the next level. Our first goal is to exit the group,” he concluded.

Despite an earthquake in Genoa that has claimed 39 lives, the Italian Serie A will kick off on Saturday with Chievo hosting Champions, Juventus.