UDINE, Italy, (Reuters) – Juventus substitute Cristiano Ronaldo was denied a stoppage-time winner by VAR as Udinese came from two goals down to snatch a 2-2 draw in their thrilling Serie A season opener yesterday.
Reports in the Italian media suggested Ronaldo had asked to be named as a substitute in order to remain fit for a move away from the club, something Juve vice-president Pavel Nedved denied pre-match.
After coming off the bench, the 36-year-old Portuguese forward thought he had headed his side to victory right at the death in dramatic fashion, only for VAR to rule him offside.
In Massimiliano Allegri’s first game in charge after returning for a second spell at the club, goals by Paulo Dybala and Juan Cuadrado gave Juve a comfortable halftime lead.
A soft penalty conceded by goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny six minutes after the break gifted Udinese a route back into the match before an even more calamitous error by the Pole let Gerard Deulofeu in to level in the 83rd minute.
Ronaldo, who came on for Alvaro Morata in the second half, then celebrated meeting Federico Chiesa’s cross with a perfectly-timed header, only to see Juve’s joy curtailed by VAR after a lengthy review.
Ronaldo had sat out of Juve’s final pre-season friendly in midweek, with the club saying the Portuguese was not fully fit.
He had been expected to start against Udinese but was left on the bench, with Nedved saying before the game that fitness concerns had again kept him out and any talk that he had asked to miss the match to remain fit for a move away from the club was just speculation.
On the pitch, Juve did not need last season’s top goalscorer in Serie A, as Dybala put a frustrating campaign last term behind him with an instinctive finish early on before Cuadrado finished brilliantly to make it 2-0 inside 23 minutes.
But the visitors then conceded a soft penalty, which was converted by former Juve forward Roberto Pereyra, as the hosts came back into the contest.
Szczesny then was far too casual on the ball, trying to flick it past Stefano Okaka, who made the block, and Deulofeu was on hand to sweep the ball into an empty net to stun the visitors.
The goal was initially ruled out for a foul on Szczesny, but VAR intervened to overturn the decision.
The video assistant referee’s night was far from over. The cross from Chiesa, one of Italy’s standout performers in their Euro 2020 success this summer, was perfect, while the leap from Ronaldo was unstoppable.
The veteran looked to have snatched yet another victory for his side, but it was not meant to be as Juve, many experts’ tip for the title this season, got off to a disappointing start.
