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When Juventus were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League in disappointing fashion, Cristiano Ronaldo found himself on the receiving end of a lot of criticism.
A peripheral figure in the two legs against Porto, Ronaldo failed to score in either leg and turned his back on the crucial free-kick, which ultimately saw his side eliminated from the competition.
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When Cristiano Ronaldo joined Juventus in the summer of 2018, his brief was a simple one: win the UEFA Champions League. The Old Lady haven't won the competition since 1996, while Cristiano Ronaldo had tasted glory in the competition five times, once with Manchester United and four times with Real Madrid.
Juventus needed an expert in winning European football's biggest competition and Cristiano Ronaldo was their man. The Bianconeri had suffered at Ronaldo's hands in the past, losing the 2017 final 4-1 to Real Madrid, with the Portuguese striker netting twice in the final.
The following season Juventus had an opportunity for revenge as the teams met in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League. Juventus won the first leg at Real Madrid 3-1 and were heavy favourites going into the second leg.
However, Cristiano Ronaldo would come back to haunt them once more as he scored twice in a 3-0 victory. The Portuguese star scored one of the most spectacular goals of his career to help his team progress to the next stage of the competition.
Juventus hoped that Cristiano Ronaldo would be the final piece of the puzzle in their quest for the European trophy that has continued to elude them. Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case, and in his three seasons with the club, Ronaldo hasn't been able to lead Juventus past the quarter-finals.
Following the disappointing defeat to Porto in the Round of 16 this season, Cristiano Ronaldo found himself at the centre of the inquest into the club's failings in Europe. Former Italy international Antonio Cassano even stated, "Cristiano only thinks about his goals and his records."
However, it would be extremely unfair to say that Cristiano Ronaldo hasn't been a success at Juventus just because they have not won the UEFA Champions League.
During his time at Juventus, Cristiano Ronaldo has won two league titles and two Italian Super Cups. He has also scored a remarkable 95 goals and claimed 22 assists In 123 appearances while being voted the Serie A Footballer of the Year in 2019 and 2020.
Ronaldo has also been excellent in Europe. In 23 appearances for the club, he has scored 14 goals and claimed five assists in European competition, which clearly indicates that the club's failings in Europe have not been simply down to the form of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Football is ultimately a team game and Cristiano Ronaldo can't be held solely responsible for Juventus' failure to win the UEFA Champions League.
Cristiano Ronaldo's time at the club shouldn't be deemed a success or a failure based on whether he managed to win the competition for the sixth time. The statistics clearly indicate that Ronaldo has been a huge success since making the move to Turin.
