The burden of 28 million pounds
Perhaps only at Juventus, the gap between the two highest-paid players of the club is so obvious. Ronaldo is of course the highest receiver with an amount of about 28 million pounds/year. Meanwhile, the second-placed Paulo Dybala only received 1/5 of CR7's salary.
The story of COVID-19 destroying the finances of football teams is no longer new, but the answer to how to solve this situation has not been answered. Juventus did not escape that spiral. "The old lady" has implemented many salary cuts, but that method is only short-term, the long-term goal of stabilizing the financial fund is a headache for the upper class.
Ronaldo's current contract with Juve is valid until June 2022 and the "Old Lady" also wants everything to stop at that time. The reigning Serie A champions even wanted to sell Ronaldo earlier to save money. £28 million for a 3-year-old player, although he is very good, is still a headache for Juventus.
Will Ronaldo's expertise still meet the demand?
After a period of absence due to COVID-19, CR7 has returned and scored continuously. However, he was still faced with "crazy" criticism from captain Andrea Pirlo.
After an easy win over Ferencvaros in the UEFA Champions League, Pirlo was unhappy with the form and selfishness of the attack. Surprisingly, three of the "Old Lady" scored in that match from the strikers (Dybala and Morata's double). Ronaldo played the whole match but did not score any goals.
"I have spoken to the players a lot but they make their own decisions on the pitch. They can be less self-conscious and solve the problem faster.
We played with 2 local strikers and 2 players playing on the wing. Up to now, I feel that no player has reached 100% of their form, there needs to be a rotation," Pirlo told Fabio Capello on Sky Sports Italia.
Ronaldo is one of those who have been criticized for his attitude. Pirlo's words may not be specifically aimed at any individual, but the young coach's point of view is very clear, everyone has time to be replaced. A person with such a sky-high salary and not on the "untouchable" list is easily the first target to be eliminated.
Ronaldo certainly did not let himself be pushed like that and rumors of him joining PSG increased. If he felt unwell, CR7 would leave early to put himself in the position of the top and still have money.
But there is an undeniable truth, Juve rely too much on Ronaldo. With CR7 absent, the "Old Lady" lost too much strength. Moreover, if there is no 3-year-old superstar, where does Juve get the Champions League championship gene flowing through him to achieve that status?
