Juve are favourites with CR7 – Messi

Barcelona and Argentina star Lionel Messi says he was surprised by Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Juventus and believes his addition makes the Italian champions a clear favourite for the Champions League title. Messi, who also reflected on Barcelona’s performances in Europe over the past few years, expects the Portugal star to have a big impact in Juventus’ campaign in the Champions League this season. Ronaldo moved from Real Madrid for €100 million in the summer but is yet to score a goal in his three Serie A appearances, despite very good performances in all three games. “Real Madrid are less strong without Cristiano Ronaldo in their squad, as obviously he is one of the best in the world,” Messi told Catalunya Radio in an interview. “Juventus are a clear favourite to win the Champions League now that they have Cristiano Ronaldo. I was surprised by his decision, as I didn’t expect him to leave Madrid or go to Juventus. It’s a very good team,” Messi added. Last season, Barcelona crashed out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals after an amazing comeback by another Italian team, AS Roma. “We’ve gone out in the quarter-finals for three years running and the last one was the most painful for the way it came about. We have to aim for the trophy, because we can do it,” Messi said. “We missed out because of details, in the Pep Guardiola era against Inter, and Chelsea. Other clubs are strong, have a lot of money and sign many players, like the two Manchesters, Chelsea, Real Madrid, PSG, various Italian clubs, they all have a lot of money. “Plus when things don’t go our way, we struggle to react, as we did against Roma. We did not react the right way during the game.”