Why did Cristiano Ronaldo chew grass in training? Ex-Juventus player reveals how Portugal icon sent message to Maurizio Sarri

Former Juventus defender Gianluca Frabotta has lifted the lid on why Cristiano Ronaldo displayed a strange behavior by chewing grass during his time in Turin.

After an illustrious career at Real Madrid, Ronaldo joined Juventus in 2018 in a bid to test himself in another country while adding to his trophy haul. The Portuguese superstar had a prolific spell across his three seasons with Juve, winning multiple Serie A titles and the Coppa Italia.

However, his time with the Bianconeri wasn’t without its controversy. It was known that Ronaldo, at some point, was not on good terms with then-manager Maurizio Sarri, who was in charge during the 2019/2020 season. Several years have passed since they both left the club, and Frabotta has revealed a tense moment between them that led Ronaldo to pull off a bizarre act to show his annoyance.

In a recent interview with Corriere della Sera, Frabotta was asked the kind of teammate Cristiano Ronaldo was, to which he responded:

“A daily example. One of his gestures stuck in my mind. During a tactical drill, Sarri was showing him the movements he should make in set pieces. He was a little annoyed. He was different; he didn't need instructions; he could sense where the ball would end up. To make the coach understand, he pulled up some grass, sniffed it, and chewed it.”

Speaking further, Frabotta also mentioned playing with Ronaldo as one of the things he is proud of. He added:

"To be proud of what I've achieved and to keep dreaming. From playing under the apartment building with the other kids, I found myself playing with Cristiano Ronaldo. Why should I stop believing in it?"

While Ronaldo achieved domestic success with Juventus, he failed to deliver on the European stage with the club. Across his three seasons in Turin, Ronaldo scored 101 goals and provided 28 assists in 134 appearances across competitions.

“Juventus are good at keeping it down” – When Antonio Cassano claimed Cristiano Ronaldo and Maurizio Sarri are at loggerheads

Former Italy international Antonio Cassano once claimed there was tension between Cristiano Ronaldo and Maurizio Sarri, who was widely accused of being too demanding. Cassano’s comments came after Ronaldo was substituted in back-to-back fixtures against Lokomotiv Moscow and AC Milan.

Cassano told Tiki Taka in 2019:

“I think Ronaldo has a big problem with Sarri. Everything started with two consecutive substitutions, which will irritate any player. In my opinion, there’s a problem between them and Juventus are good at keeping it down.”

Meanwhile, Ronaldo and Sarri at the time played down reports of a rift between them.