One of Cristiano Ronaldo's former managers at Juventus has revealed the difficulties of coaching someone of the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's calibre.

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Italian tactician Maurizio Sarri was appointed by the Bianconeri in 2019 and parted ways with the club the following year, despite winning the Serie A title in his single season in charge.

In that campaign, Ronaldo scored 37 goals in all competitions but his relationship with Sarri took strain after the Portuguese refused to hide his disappointment at being substituted in certain matches.

Speaking recently about his time in charge, the now-Lazio manager admitted he would have loved working with a younger Ronaldo as his achievements in football make it difficult to convince the forward to adapt his game to suit the team.

"If I remember correctly, in the first match (Giorgio) Chiellini played and scored. But two days before the second match (against Napoli), he suffered from an ACL injury," he told Corriere dello Sport.

"It was a Juventus (team) that had reached the end of its cycle and I immediately realised it.

"I regret not having been able to coach Cristiano Ronaldo while he was younger. I found a player who had established himself through a certain type of football and had become a world icon.

"The team had to adapt to him, not the other way around. He scored 33 league goals with me. And four in the Champions League.

"In short, it's never easy to convince a champion with such accolades to change course."

Ronaldo scored 101 times and assisted a further 22 strikes in 134 appearances for the Old Lady.

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