The post-Cristiano Ronaldo era for Juventus is off to one sluggish start.
Juventus currently sits at 16th place in the Serie A standings after back-to-back losses to Empoli and Napoli. Most notably, Juventus’ attack has struggled to find its footing after Ronaldo’s exit, as the side has notched a mere one goal and nine total shots on target over its last two matches.
While Ronaldo’s departure from the club still has been the talk of the town, Bianconeri defender Giorgio Chiellini believes it is simply time for the side to move on and build around forward Paulo Dybala.
In speaking to the Italian-based outlet DAZN Italia (via CalcioMercato) following the match against Napoli, Chiellini touched on Ronaldo's exit from the team and provided his outlook on Juventus’ attack for this season.
“The way of playing will have to be changed,” Chiellini said. “When you have a star player like Cristiano [Ronaldo] you can't not play for him. We have to be grateful to Cristiano for these years at Juventus, but let's move on.
“This will be Paulo's team. In these years, he has lowered his averages a little bit just because of the presence of Cristiano, but he is the key player for this team, and it is something recognized by everyone inside.”
Dybala posted one underwhelming campaign last season; he totaled for seven total goal contributions over 20 appearances in league play. He has had promising sequences with the Serie A powerhouse this season, which include his one goal and one assist outing in the team’s league opener against Udinese.
Even as Dybala is currently facing a contract extension dilemma with Juventus club officials, Chiellini and the rest of the team are counting on the Argentine forward to lead the team’s attack moving forward. They sure will call upon him to put out for key performances in UEFA Champions League fixtures and must-win Serie A matches.
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