Ronaldo granted Juventus rest on the back of Champions League hat-trick heroics

Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri has revealed that Cristiano Ronaldo will play no part in a meeting with Genoa on Sunday as he is awarded a well-earned break.

The Portuguese superstar has been left out of the Bianconeri’s latest matchday squad for Serie A action.

With the reigning champions 18 points clear at the top of the table, they find themselves in the enviable position of being able to rotate in domestic competition.

That means Ronaldo, fresh from his Champions League hat-trick heroics against Atletico Madrid, can take in a rest and recharge his batteries.

Allegri has said of his talismanic forward: “Cristiano needed to rest and therefore he will not come to Genoa.

“Cristiano played plenty of games this year.

“We spoke with each other and he shared my idea about this management in the next matches until the Champions League.”

Allegri appears to be suggesting that Ronaldo may not figure as prominently as he has until this point over the coming weeks.

He has taken in 36 appearances across all competitions this season, registering 24 goals.

Those efforts have Juve closing in on yet another Serie A crown, while also chasing down Champions League glory.

Having lifted that trophy on five previous occasions, including an historic run of three successive triumphs at Real Madrid, Ronaldo was taken to Turin to help deliver European success.

He will be given every opportunity to be in the best possible shape for crunch clashes to come, with Juve having been paired with Ajax in this season’s quarter-finals.

The first leg of that clash will be taken in on April 10, with there Serie A games against Genoa, Empoli, Cagliari and AC Milan to come before then.

Ronaldo has also rejoined the Portugal ranks for upcoming Euro 2020 qualifiers having not figured for his country since the 2018 World Cup.

He will head into meetings with Ukraine and Serbia on the back of a break, with Allegri revealing that he is also planning to give Giorgio Chiellini and Blaise Matuidi a rest.

Paulo Dybala will be involved, though, while Mattia Perrin will fill in between the sticks.

Allegri has said of the challenge facing Juve against Genoa: "Only five wins are missing to claim the Scudetto mathematically.

“Tomorrow it will be a difficult game.

“Genoa, at home, is a tough opponent and we have to have the right performance. In the first game [a 1-1 draw in October], we dropped points against them.”