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“There is no doubting Ronaldo’s quality but Serie A has thrown at him an unlikely competitor for the Capocannoniere award in the form of Quagliarella.”
Cristiano Ronaldo is like fine wine. He just keeps getting better with age. Having recently turned 34, the man doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. After almost a decade of dominance in LaLiga, Ronaldo decided to take up a new challenge with Juventus.
The highlight of his time at Real Madrid was his eternal rivalry with Lionel Messi. It was a healthy rivalry that brought the best out of him. Not only did it start the never-ending debate of who is better between Ronaldo and Messi, but also propelled the Portuguese to win 4 Ballon d’Ors, 4 Champions League titles, 4 UEFA Best Player awards, 2 LaLiga titles, 2 Spanish Cups, 2 Spanish Super Cups, 4 FIFA Club World Cups, and 3 UEFA Super Cups during his time at Real Madrid.
The constant desire to be the best helped him achieve enormous success in his career. No one expected Ronaldo to face much competition in the Italian league in terms of goalscoring. Yet here we are, after 22 rounds in the Serie A with Ronaldo leading the scoring charts with 17 goals followed by a certain Fabio Quagliarella who has 16.
For those who are unaware, Quagliarella is a 36-year-old striker who plays for Sampdoria. Having made his Serie A debut for Torino in 2000, the striker went on to play for Fiorentina, Chieti, Ascoli, Sampdoria, Udinese, Napoli and Juventus.
He returned to Sampdoria in 2016 which marked the beginning of the most successful spell of Quagliarella’s career. He finished the 2017-18 season with 19 goals in 35 appearances. This season, after breaking Gabriel Batistuta's all-time record of scoring in 11 consecutive Serie A matches in a single season, Quagliarella is well on course to beat his personal best. Currently, he stands just behind Ronaldo with 16 goals in 21 appearances.
With Quagliarella seemingly in the form of his life, the race for the Serie A top scorer will go right down to the wire. Here are three reasons why Ronaldo should fear Quagliarella in the race for the Capocannoniere.
#1 He is a Serie A veteran
Quagliarella, despite being 36 years of age, should not be underestimated. Having spent his entire playing career in Italy, the man knows the league inside out. He has played for 8 different Italian clubs and has won three consecutive Serie A titles.
He might not possess incredible pace but his experience gives his game a different edge. His knowledge of the league is an added benefit. Quagliarella’s intelligent movement and his vision make him a truly quality player.
He is a seasoned striker whose technical ability inside the final third makes him a lethal forward. He can finish well and also hold up the ball and link play. Though he has always been known for scoring some great goals (like the Serie A goal of the season in 2009), it’s his consistency this season that has got everyone talking.
No doubt Ronaldo’s supreme quality will always prevail but Quagliarella’s experience in the Serie A will prove beneficial over the course of the season.
#2 Mental fortitude
Not many people know about Quagliarella’s brush with a stalker while he was playing for Napoli. He and his family were threatened for about 5 years which eventually led to his departure from the club. His sudden exit from Napoli turned the fans against him and he was branded a traitor.
In 2017, he finally opened up about the incident. On hearing about it, people started to come around. He was appreciated for going through such a tough period with absolute dignity. The Neapolitans who initially turned against him started accepting him with open arms. “You’ve lived through hell with enormous dignity. We will embrace you again, Fabio, son of this city,” read a Napoli banner in 2017.
If anything, his ordeal has only made him mentally tougher. In his subsequent interviews, Quagliarella expressed how the stalker incident affected 5 years of his career and how he now enjoys every moment, trying to make use of whatever time he's been left with in the top flight.
The same attitude reflects in his performances this season. He looks like a man on a mission. He is well aware that there won't be a season like this again and that this is his chance to get his name in the history books.
As many sports psychologists would say, not many footballers possess such mental fortitude. Quagliarella’s desire and his mental strength would prove to be great assets in the race against Ronaldo.
#3 No European competitions to worry about
Sampdoria are not a part of any European competition while Juventus, as we all know, bought Ronaldo for the sole reason of conquering Europe. Ronaldo, on a personal level, hasn’t been too prolific for the Old Lady in the Champions League. He has played 5 games (389 minutes) and scored only 1 goal. Add to that, a red card he earned during his UCL debut for the club and it leaves a lot to be desired from ‘Mr. Champions League’.
Last season, Ronaldo almost single-handedly carried Real Madrid to the UCL final. He was extremely efficient in the knockout games. Juventus' hierarchy expects more of the same from him. He himself would be raring to fully express himself in the competition he has dominated so often in the past. Allegri too would be inclined in giving Ronaldo a rest in the league games so as to use him efficiently in the Champions League.
On the other hand, Quagliarella would be focussed solely on the league where he can give a 100% without the distraction of European football.
All in all, it’s going to be a fun race for the Capocannoniere award this season. Let’s just sit back and enjoy the Italian league in all its glory.
