Cristiano Ronaldo has played down injury fears after being forced off in the first half of Portugal’s Euro 2020 qualifier against Serbia due to a muscle injury.
The Portugal captain pulled up while chasing a pass and clutched his right leg in pain. He immediately signaled to the substitutes bench and was replaced by Pizzi, leaving Juventus fans fretting ahead of their crucial quarter final showdown with Ajax in the Champions League in two weeks’ time.
But Ronaldo insisted he will recover swiftly.
“I’m not worried, I know my body,” Ronaldo told Portuguese media. “I should be back in one or two weeks.”
Portugal were trailing 1-0 at the time when Ronaldo was struck by an uncharacteristic muscle injury. He immediately looked to be in some discomfort after chasing a loose ball, noticeably wincing after appearing to pull his right hamstring.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner received treatment from the Portuguese medical staff but to no avail. The hamstring injury was the second time medical staff had to tend to Ronaldo, who also received a bloodied nose earlier on in the first half. Any injury could have major ramifications for Juventus’ Champions League hopes.
The five-time European Cup winner recently escaped a ban for imitiating Diego Simeone’s ‘cojones’ celebration after scoring against Atletico in the last-16 of the competition.
His hat-trick turned the last-eight tie on its head at the Juventus Stadium but the Italian champions could now face the prospect of travelling to Amsterdam without their £100million recruit.
Ajax host Juventus in two weeks’ time on April 10, with the reverse leg in Turin just six days later.
