After pulling off the transfer of the summer, Juventus will be eagerly anticipating their first glimpse at Cristiano Ronaldo in action for the club.
As confirmed by the Turin giants in an official statement, they spent in excess of €100m to sign the Portuguese superstar from Real Madrid earlier this month.
With an impressive trophy haul already secured after spells in the Spanish capital and with Man Utd, along with 573 career goals in 763 appearances, Ronaldo will now begin a new chapter in his life as he looks to conquer Italy and emerge as the catalyst to help end Juve’s wait for European glory.
Given his exploits at the World Cup in Russia this summer and his late end to last season after featuring in the Champions League final, it’s likely that he will be granted extended holiday time to recharge his batteries ahead of another gruelling campaign.
Whether or not he returns in time to feature in the pre-season fixtures remains to be seen, but in terms of his competitive debut, Ronaldo will look to make his mark in his first appearance for Juventus when they take on Chievo on the weekend of August 19 in their opening Serie A fixture, as per the club’s site.
He’ll have to wait until Week 2 to play in front of the Juve faithful, and it will be a tough test given Lazio visit Turin on August 26.
Despite being set to turn 34 next year, the Portuguese forward has shown no real sign of decline in his game, as evidenced in his tally of 44 goals in 44 games last season.
In turn, he’ll undoubtedly be raring to go to kick-start his new challenge, with Juve hopeful that he can lead them to further glory.