ANDREAS SOLARO / AFP
Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo has raised doubts about his future at the Old Lady with a cryptic Instagram message.
Ronaldo set another career milestone over the weekend after becoming the first player to have emerged as the highest goal scorer in three of Europe’s top five leagues – Premier League, La Liga, and Serie A.
With one year left on his Juventus contract, speculations had been rife about him leaving the Italian giants if they missed out on a top-four finish, for a Champions League spot.
The Portuguese fuelled the speculation when he took to his Instagram handle on Monday, declaring that he has reached a goal he set for himself at Juventus. “This year we couldn’t win Serie A, congratulations to Inter for the well-deserved title. However, I have to value everything that we achieved this season at Juventus, both in collective and individual terms,” he wrote.
“The Italian Super Cup, the Italian Cup, and the Serie A Top Scorer trophy fill me with happiness, mainly due to the difficulty they carry with them, in a country where nothing is easy to win.
“With these achievements, I reached a goal that I had set myself since the first day I arrived in Italy: to win the Championship, the Cup and the Super Cup, and also to be Best Player and Top Scorer in this great football country filled with tremendous players, giant clubs and a very own football culture.”
Despite not featuring in Juventus last game of the season, which was a must-win, the 36-year-old emerged Serie A top scorer of the season with 29 goals, five more than closest rival Romelu Lukaku.
In celebrating his achievements, the five-time Balon d’Ór winner made out time to thank his teammates and the club.
“I’ve already said that I don’t chase records, records chase me. For those who don’t understand what I mean by this, it’s very simple: football is a collective game, but it is through individual overcoming that we help our teams achieve their goals,” he said.
“Thanks to everyone who took part in this journey! We stand together.”
Ronaldo is expected to engage in talks with the Juventus owners over his future.
His future may depend on Andrea Pirlo still controlling the reins at Turin next season.
However, Pirlo’s position is still in doubt after Inter broke Juventus’ stranglehold on the Serie A title and they struggled to finish the season in the top four. In an interview with DAZN via Calciomercato, Pirlo insisted his major goal was to finish well, despite an unsuccessful defense of his team’s Serie A title.
“I don’t know, for me it was important to finish well the work started this summer, winning the Italian Cup and leading the team in the Champions League,” Pirlo said.
“We leave the words to those who have to decide in the future, I have always been 100% committed and this is the result. “
