The Juve boss admitted that the 35-year-old was not happy to be ceded to the Coppa Italia victory
Juventus coach Andrea Pirlo has defended his decision to replace Cristiano Ronaldo for Tuesday’s victory at Inter, although the Portuguese star is not happy with the departure of the pitch.
Ronaldo scored two goals in the first half of the return leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final, which came back after Lautaro Martinez had opened the scoring for Inter in the ninth minute.
Juve would win the match 2-1 at the San Siro, gaining a vital advantage in next week’s return to Turin.
After the match, Pirlo was questioned about his decision to remove Ronaldo in the 77th minute and said he felt the need to rest the star of his team, who turns 36 on Friday.
“It’s normal that when you go out in a game like this you want to play to help the team,” Pirlo said Rai Sport.
“There is no contractual clause that says it cannot be subordinated. He knows he’s a key player for us, but to catch his breath, he always has to be on top.
“He proved it with his performances after some criticism. I couldn’t have done it better.
“I said [to him] that I had to rest, we have an important match on Saturday. He has played many consecutive games, from time to time he likes a little break “.
After Inter beat Juve 2-0 in Serie A just two weeks ago, Pirlo was happy to see his team bounce back against a tough opponent.
“We weren’t ourselves against Inter in the league, that was a trip, but it was also a valuable lesson and we worked out the mistakes that were made in that match,” Pirlo added.
“This is only the first round, we have not achieved anything yet. What it shows is that if we are fully focused, it becomes difficult for anyone who is against us. We know our strength.
“It’s not easy to maintain that intensity when you play almost every day. I saw a big reaction after going back. “
Before Juventus face Inter in the return leg, they will face Roma in Serie A on Saturday.