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Cristiano Ronaldo endured a frustrating night on his Champions League debut for Juventus after being shown a straight red card.
The Portugal international was given his marching orders just 29 minutes into Juve’s game against Valencia. Ronaldo appeared to have clashed with Jeison Murillo following a foul, sparking a brawl between players of both teams.
Unfortunately, the referee issued a straight red card to the former Real Madrid star for his role in the bust-up. The sending off left Ronaldo in an emotional mood, as he continued to shed tears while leaving the field.
The incident means the five-time Ballon d’Or winner will now miss Juventus’s next two Champions League games in Group H. More importantly, the red card also denies Ronaldo a return to Old Trafford when the Italian champions travel to play his old club Manchester United.
Twitter has been been in an uproar following the red card to Ronaldo, with football fans across the globe sharing their views on the incident. While some sympathized with the Portuguese, others believe he could have avoided the red card had he comported himself.
There is also a third segment, including Ronaldo’s former teammate Rio Ferdinand, who believe the decision was harsh and are urging Juventus to appeal the red card if possible.
It remains to be seen if Juve will appeal or even if the red card will be overturned, but what is evident right now is that it is a big blow for Ronaldo - both personally and for his club.
With Lionel Messi scoring a hat-trick on Tuesday, the 33-year-old would have loved to give his own reply against Valencia. But now he can’t - at least not for the next two group games.
He will have to wait until Juve’s third group game to make his Champions League return.
Below are some of the best tweets following Ronaldo’s red card:
