Juventus manager Maurizio Sarri explained that star striker Cristiano Ronaldo was absent in Bianconeri’s Coppa Italia match against Udinese on Wednesday as the 34-year-old had a bit of sinusitis for a couple of days and he felt some shivers on the match day.
“Ronaldo was not present because for a couple of days he had a bit of sinusitis and today (Wednesday) he felt some shivers, so we prefer to keep him rested given the cold evening,” Sarri said as quoted by Juve’s official website.
“Is it Sarri’s Juve? No, it’s Cristiano’s, (Paulo) Dybala’s, (Gonzalo) Higuain’s Juve… I’m trying to put something of my own in it, but you have to respect the characteristics of the players,” he added.
The Ronaldo-less Juventus drubbed Udinese by a 4-0 scoreline in the round of 16 of at Allianz Stadium. Gonzalo Higuain opened the scoring as Paulo Dybala grabbed a brace, while Douglas Costa added the fourth goal through a penalty.
“The knockout fixtures are always an unknown factor, but the feeling in training was that the team was brilliant, so I expected a great performance, and, in fact, we had a good match,” said Sarri.
“The first goal is of rare beauty, with trade at full speed. I’m happy for (Federico) Bernardeschi’s performance, there is still work to be done, but the enthusiasm and the feeling is that in this role he can do it well because he has the technical and physical qualities to cover it.
“Our team has great potential, sometimes it gives the feeling of being able to do more, but we are growing,” the manager added.