Cristiano Ronaldo was slammed for an "unforgivable error" asJuventus crashed out of theChampions League .- Ronaldo turned his back on a free-kick in the dying minutes which crept in to hand Porto victory.
- Corriere dello Sport also criticized the 36-year-old, using the headline "Betrayed by Ronaldo."
Italian media said Cristiano Ronaldo "betrayed" Juventus after making an "unforgivable error" as his side crashed out of the Champions League last-16 at the hands of FC Porto on Tuesday.
Juventus, which trailed Porto 2-1 from the first leg, beat the Portuguese side 3-2 on the night but was knocked out thanks to the away goals rule in a truly thrilling affair at the Allianz Stadium.
In European knockout
Sergio Oliveira gave Porto the lead from the penalty spot after just 19 minutes, before a stunning second half brace from Juve's Federico Chiesa levelled the tie. Juventus then thought they'd won it when Alvaro Morata scored in the 92nd minute, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside.
As a result, the tie went to extra time, where the drama continued.
With just five minutes to play in extra time, Porto was then awarded a free-kick from 30-yards out, which Oliveira stepped up to take.
With a long run up, Oliveira struck the ball low and hard towards the the goal. Ronaldo, who was standing in the wall, turned away from and stuck a leg out in a lazy attempt to block the ball.
Oliveira's strike found the back of the net to leave Juventus needing two goals in a matter of minutes to progress to the quarterfinals.
Andrea Pirlo's side scored one courtesy of midfielder Adrian Rabiot, but could not find a second as Porto progressed to the competition's last eight for the second season running.
-Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) March 9, 2021
After the game former Juventus and England manager Fabio Capello, who was serving as a pundit Sky Sport Italia, slammed Ronaldo for his role in Porto's decisive goal.
"That was an unforgivable error," the Italian said. "In my day, you chose the players who went into the wall and they couldn't be someone afraid of the ball.
"They were scared of the ball and jumped away from it, turning their backs. That's unforgivable."
Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport also criticized the 36-year-old forward for turning his back on Oliveira's free-kick, using the headline "Betrayed by Ronaldo" on its front page on Wednesday morning.
-Sacha Pisani (@Sachk0) March 10, 2021
The defeat for Juventus was another setback in what has been a disappointing first season in charge for Andrea Pirlo.
Juve currently sit a lowly third in Serie A, 10 points behind leaders Inter Milan with just 12 games to play, and is on course for its worst finish in a decade.
The last time the club did not win the Scudetto was in 2010/2011, when it finished seventh as AC Milan ran away with the title.
Pirlo has not given up hope of turning things round just yet, however, saying after the defeat to Porto: "Now we have to focus our thoughts on Serie A because it's only March and there's still time to climb back up the table."
Juventus next faces Cagliari on Sunday March 14.