‘Serene’ Ronaldo maintains top form

UDINE, Italy — Cristiano Ronaldo asked his Juventus teammates to leave him alone.

For all that he’s embroiled in — accused of rape nine years ago — the soccer superstar wanted some space so he could celebrate his goal on Saturday all by himself in front of a TV camera.

He lept into the air with an emphatic double fist pump, as he’s often marked his goals, and then let his teammates congratulate him.

Ronaldo’s powerful, angled goal, the second of the match and his fourth of the season, was met by applause and boos in the Italian league game at the home of Udinese. Ronaldo and Juventus were 2-0 winners.

“Ronaldo had a good game,” Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri said. “He’s been training serenely and tonight he scored an extraordinary goal.”

Just over a week ago, Kathryn Mayorga filed a civil lawsuit in the U.S. saying she was raped by Ronaldo in Las Vegas in 2009. Police have reopened the investigation. Ronaldo has denied the accusation.

Ronaldo wasn’t available for questions after the match and Allegri wouldn’t speculate what’s been going through the superstar’s mind away from the soccer field.

“Off the pitch, I don’t know, because I don’t live with him at home,” Allegri said. “I see him on the pitch and he’s serene. He trains, he plays and he scores goals — that’s the most important thing.”

Ronaldo played for Juventus last weekend in league play, but midweek he missed a Champions League game because of a suspension from a red card and was left out of Portugal’s squad for upcoming international matches.

On Saturday, Ronaldo’s mother, Maria Dolores Aveiro, sent her son a message on Instagram: “Good luck son and for your team because together we are stronger.”

Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa, while in Spain, spoke in defence of Ronaldo, appealing for a presumption of innocence.