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Juventus boss Andrea Pirlo has revealed why he opted to put star man Cristiano Ronaldo on the bench in Saturday’s victory over Lazio at the Allianz Stadium.
Juventus battled from behind to beat Lazio 3-1 and close the gap on high-flying league leaders Inter Milan to seven points.
Joaquin Correa put the visitors ahead shortly before the 15-minute mark, but Adrien Rabiot’s 39th-minute strike and Alvaro Morata’s second-half brace gave Juventus the win.
Speaking to Sky Italia, via Metro, after full-time, Pirlo revealed he opted to rest Ronaldo ahead of the Champions League second leg against Porto on Tuesday.
“He came from eight or nine consecutive games, we made an agreement during the week (for Ronaldo to be rested), it was already planned. Cristiano is an added value, the boys have done what they had to do tonight without him. Cristiano has already scored 20 goals, it was normal that others also scored.”
Ronaldo has been a star performer for the Bianconeri this campaign, topping the Serie A scoring charts with 20 goals in 22 appearances.
He has also scored four goals in five outings for Juventus in the Champions League, and Pirlo will hope he can inspire the Old Lady to overturn their 2-1 deficit against Porto this coming week.
Juventus record impressive comeback against Lazio
Juventus hosted Lazio at the Allianz Stadium, aiming to extend their unbeaten streak to three games and grab their first win over the visitors this season.
The spoils were shared in a 1-1 draw in the first meeting back in November. Felipe Caicedo’s 95th-minute goal canceled out Cristiano Cristiano Ronaldo’s first-half opener.
This time around, Dejan Kulusevski’s pass was stolen by Correa, who slalomed into the box before finding the target in the 15th minute.
Juventus gradually grew into the game and were soon rewarded with a goal of their own. Adrien Rabiot defied a tight angle to smash his shot past Reina and draw the hosts level before the break.
Andrea Pirlo's men came charging out in the second half, with Morata scoring two goals in three minutes to hand Juventus a 3-1 comeback win. Pirlo also hailed his side for turning things around and grabbing the desired result.
“We started badly due to our mistake with a back pass and we opened the goal to Lazio. There was a great reaction and despite the many (injury) absences we played an excellent match. We didn’t get down and that’s the most important thing.”
Do you think Juventus will turn the tables and knock Porto out of the Champions League on Tuesday? Sound off in the comments.
