MILAN
Massimiliano Allegri oversaw his final game as Juventus coach on Sunday, after guiding the team to an eighth consecutive Serie A title but paying the price for yet another Champions League failure despite the sensational signing of Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo was left out alongside a host of other starters as the Allegri era ended with the whimper of a 2-0 defeat at Sampdoria, having played 31 of 38 matches and closing the season as the team’s top scorer with 21 league goals.
But helping the team to another Serie A title was not why the 34-year-old was signed last summer.
Ronaldo had spent nine glittering seasons at Real Madrid, lifting a fourth Champions League trophy in five seasons before moving to Italy.
His arrival in Turin on a 100-million-euro ($115 million) deal, plus a reported 30 million euros a year, was hailed as “the deal of the century” by the Italian press.
