Turin: Cristiano Ronaldo made a mockery of Atletico Madrid’s vaunted defense, and then mocked its coach as well.
Ronaldo scored a hat-trick against the normally resilient Spanish side to send Juventus into the Champions League quarterfinals with a 3-0 win as the Bianconeri fought back from a two-goal first-leg defeat.
The former Real Madrid player outjumped Atletico’s defenders to score a header in each half and then converted a late penalty for his first hat trick since joining Juventus in the summer — and just when they needed it most.
He celebrated at the final whistle by mimicking the obscene gesture Atletico coach Diego Simeone made after the Spanish side’s second goal in the first leg — having the final say against a rival he so often defeated as a Real Madrid player.
Simeone was fined 20,000 euros ($22,500) by UEFA for improper conduct and it remains to be seen whether Ronaldo will face a similar punishment.
It was Ronaldo’s eighth hat-trick in the Champions League, moving him level with Barcelona’s Lionel Messi and demonstrating why Juventus paid Real Madrid 112 million euros ($131.5 million) for the Portugal star who has dominated the competition in recent years.
It was the first time Juventus came back from a two-goal defeat in the first leg.
“Maybe that’s why Juventus signed me,” Ronaldo said. “To help it do things that it had never done before. This result is a great push for the future, we’re strong and we showed it.”
However, Ronaldo had only scored one goal in the competition for Juventus until Tuesday.
“It would have been strange if Ronaldo’s Champions League season ended with only one goal,” Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri said. “Juventus signed him for nights like this and tonight he made the difference.”
He has also now scored 25 goals against Atletico in his career.
“He’s the best in the world,” Simeone said. “We suffered, as happened to them in the first leg. They’re through and that’s right. They deserved it … Maybe I didn’t manage to transmit to my players what we needed.”
AP
