The La Liga may already be on full blast, but not for Cristiano Ronaldo. The 32-year-old superstar is clearly struggling in the Spanish League as he’s trailed by rival Lionel Messi by nine goals. This comes to a surprise to most football fans as never before had Ronaldo have a bad start to the Primera Division season.
Unexpected Slow Start
The Portuguese forward had a rough season start with Real Madrid, and up until now, he’s still looking to get his bearings right. Ronaldo is still left scoreless despite doing his seeming best in the first few games he had with the Spanish team.
This is an unprecedented season start for the elite forward as he averaged one goal in the first three games of the La Liga in seasons past. With this, people point to the probably poor striking form that led to the decrease of his efficiency in the field. However, expert analysts and the recent happenings prove that it’s more than just a case of poor performance.
The Effects of the Infamous Ban
The whole world was caught off guard after Ronaldo was issued a 5-game suspension in La Liga. This happened during Real Madrid’s whirlwind match against Barcelona. Ronaldo’s first 20 minutes in the season left him with two yellow cards that led to his temper getting out of control. The result — Ronaldo pushing the referee.
This is probably the first time Ronaldo failed to contain his disappointment after his previous Supercopa game proved to showcase his improvement over the break. So what does this mean for Zinedine Zidane’s team? Well, they obviously need to make up for their shortcomings as they’ve fallen to the 5th spot in La Liga’s power rankings.
Ronaldo surely is one of the factors to blame for the team’s mediocre performance. As of now, Real Madrid trails Barcelona in the outright betting rankings as Barca gets strong 8/13 odds. Meanwhile, the Meringues is still working on their 7/4 odds. They need to double up their efforts as fellow Madrid-based club, Atletico Madrid is likely to improve on its 20/1 odds especially that they’re currently in 2nd place in La Liga standings.
Real, together with Ronaldo, sets their eyes on retaking the throne as their game betting odds suggest. If you’re looking for the top free bets no deposits required, you’re most likely going to get 6/5 favorite odds for Real. This will then go head-to-head against Dortmund’s 2/1 odds. They even still are the 1/14 and 1/5 favorite over Espanyol’s meek 25/1 and Getafe’s 10/1 odds.
Ronaldo Sets His Eyes on Messi
Cristiano Ronaldo is considered to be the face of the game by many before Messi entered the football scene. However, things turn the other way around in today’s current situation. Ronaldo is now 9 goals behind his counterpart.
This is a pretty big deal knowing that the two are recently referred to as a Ferrari and a Porsche as a result of their same-level-caliber. The Portuguese might have a better resume when it comes to the number of goals he scored. Having made a total of 25 career goals, Messi’s 16 scores are quite of an understatement. But then again, it’s not just about the number of goals as it’s more on the overall performance.
Ronaldo wouldn’t settle with him being regarded as a second-rate player, as this means tarnishing his already-stunning reputation. At the end of the day, it all boils down to the fact that these two players are in for an endless pursuit to superiority.
Let’s just hope that Ronaldo gets it right this time as his legacy lies in the balance.
