Cristiano Ronaldo set a Juventus club record by becoming the first player for the club to score in 10 Serie A games in a row, but couldn’t save his side from a shock 2-1 loss to Hellas Verona on Saturday.
Ronaldo, who celebrated his 35th birthday during the week, scored the game’s opening goal at the Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi when he ran onto Rodrigo Bentancur’s through ball and fired home for his 17th goal in his last 14 games for Maurizio Sarri’s side.
The goal meant he broke the record previously set by David Trezeguet, who scored in nine straight domestic games for the Italian giants in 2005.
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But Ronaldo’s joy was short-lived as Verona mounted a stunning comeback, with former Liverpool and Sunderland striker Fabio Borini equalising for the hosts before Giampaolo Pazzini grabbed the winner with an 86th minute penalty.
The result means Juve have lost two of their last three games, and Inter have the chance to move level on points with them at the top of the table if they can beat their rivals AC Milan tonight.
Ronaldo could set another record if he scores in his next two games by becoming the first player to score in 12 Serie A games in a row for any side.
The record is currently held by former Fiorentina forward Gabriel Batistuta, who netted in 11 consecutive matches in the 1993-1994 campaign.
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Ronaldo will have the opportunity to do so with a home game against Brescia on February 16 followed by a trip to bottom-of-the-table SPAL.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has recently been linked with a move to Bayern Munich, but their president Herbert Hainer responded to a question about him at a fan event by saying: “Of course there are many names in the press, which is understandable. But Ronaldo should be a bit too old for us.”
