CELEBRITY
CRISTIANO RONALDO SCORES RECORD-BREAKING 100TH JUVENTUS GOAL
Juventus got their top-four bid back on track with an impressive 3-1 win over Sassuolo at the Mapei Stadium on Wednesday evening.
The home side were handed a glorious opportunity to take the lead with just 15 minutes on the clock as a catalogue of defensive errors from Juventus led to Leonardo Bonucci fouling Giacomo Raspadori in the area.
Domenico Berardi stepped up to take the resulting spot-kick though he was denied by the evergreen Gianluigi Buffon as the scores remained at 0-0.
Sassuolo would be made to regret their penalty miss just ten minutes later as Andrea Pirlo’s side hit the front thanks to Adrien Rabiot.
The Frenchman picked up the ball in midfield before driving at the home side’s backline, shrugging off a challenge before picking his spot and drilling a lovely left-footed effort beyond Andrea Consigli to make it 1-0 to Juventus.
Pirlo’s side took a firm grip on proceedings on the stroke of half-time as Cristiano Ronaldo managed to isolate Marlon Santos on the Juventus right.
The Portuguese superstar cut inside, leaving the Sassuolo defender almost flat on his backside before coolly slotting the ball beyond Consigli to make it 2-0 to the visitors and bringing up his 100th goal for the club in the process.
Raspadori halved the deficit shortly before the hour mark as he combined superbly on the edge of the area with Manuel Locatelli before firing past Buffon, though the fightback lasted little more than seven minutes.
Anything Ronaldo can do Paulo Dybala can do better, and the Argentinian forward grabbed his 100th Juventus goal midway through the second half as he rounded off a swift Juve counter-attack with a deft clip over the goalkeeper.
In truth, the scoreline probably flattered the visitors a little with Sassuolo giving a good account of themselves, though it was Pirlo’s side who took home the spoils and strengthened their bid for Champions League football.
Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo crossed one billion followers across his social media accounts, aided by his newly-launched YouTube channel that has attracted more than 60 million subscribers in just over three weeks.
Ronaldo, who scored his 900th career goal last week to help Portugal beat Croatia 2-1 in the Nations League, is the first human being to reach a billion followers on social media, global media reports said.
“We’ve made history, one billion followers! This is more than just a number, it’s a testament to our shared passion, drive, and love for the game and beyond,” Ronaldo posted on X.
“You’ve been with me every step of the way, through all the highs and the lows. This journey is our journey… thank you for believing in me, for your support, and for being part of my life.”
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid player reached the milestone with over 639 million followers on Instagram, 170 million on Facebook and 113 million on X.
The 39-year-old topped Forbes’ list of highest-paid athletes this year, with off-field earnings of $60 million, boosted by his large social media following.
Ronaldo’s club Al-Nassr will host Al-Ahli in the Saudi Pro League on Friday.
-Reuters
Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo launched his YouTube channel on Wednesday and hundreds of thousands of subscribers signed up within a couple of hours.
The 39-year-old five-times Ballon D’Or winner plays for Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr.
“The wait is over. My @YouTube channel is finally here! SIUUUbscribe and join me on this new journey,” Ronaldo posted on his social media accounts.
A couple of hours after posting his first video, 1.69M subscribers had joined he channel.
Ronaldo has 112.5 million followers on the X platform, 170 million on Facebook and 636 million on Instagram.
The former Real Madrid and Manchester United player is preparing for his team’s Saudi Pro League opener against Al-Raed on Thursday.
-Reuters
Inter Miami will be the last club Argentina captain Lionel Messi plays for, the 36-year-old forward said on Wednesday, adding he feels “a little bit scared” at the thought of the day he decides to retire.
Messi, a World Cup winner with Argentina in 2022, has a contract with the Major League Soccer side until 2025 following his arrival last summer after a spell with French champions Paris St Germain.
“Inter Miami will be my last club. I love playing football. I enjoy everything even more because I am aware that there is less and less left,” Messi told ESPN.
“I’m not ready to leave football. I’ve done this all my life, I love playing football, I enjoy training, the day-to-day, the matches… And yes, there’s always a little bit of fear that it’s all over.”
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi is preparing with his national team to defend their Copa America title, with the tournament kicking off on June 20 in the United States.
Argentina will take on Canada in the opening match before facing Group A rivals Chile on June 25 and Peru four days later.
-Reuters
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