This comes just days ahead of Juventus' Champions League showdown vs Barcelona, with Ronaldo facing a race against the clock to be available.

Juventus superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is under investigation, as confirmed by Italy's sports minister Vincenzo Spadafora. The reason: the five-time Ballon d'Or winner allegedly breached COVID-19 protocols.

The Portuguese icon is currently away from the squad after contracting the coronavirus. This diagnosis came during the international break, with the 35-year-old goalscoring machine featuring in Portugal's 0-0 draws with first Spain then France.

Ronaldo tested positive after those two results and was forced to leave the squad, thus missing his country's 3-0 win over Sweden. The attacker took a private air ambulance to his house in Italy in order to self-isolate and here is where the accusations lie.

Vincenzo Spadafora initially speculated that CR7 breached COVID-19 protocols as he did not have the necessary authorization in regards with his flight home.  "Yes, I think so, if there were no specific authorizations from the health authority" were the minister's words when asked if the Bianconeri talisman broke the rules.

The official later confirmed that Ronaldo is under investigation, arguing that no one is exempt during the pandemic – not even the billionaire footballer.

"Cristiano did not respect the protocol. There is an investigation by the Federal Prosecutor's Office to prove it," he said to Rai Tre (as per Goal). 

"The virus has taught us that no one is exempt, obviously they are all people who have tried to respect the protocols as much as possible, but the only solution in the end is to stay at home."

While the "no one is exempt" sentiment is excellent, the question is did Cristiano break any rules to warrant an investigation? The former Real Madrid man is adamant he is innocent, taking to social media to state he had all the necessary authorization before returning to Italy.

"I did not break any protocol," he wrote on Instagram. "They're saying that I broke Italian laws but it's all a lie. I spoke with my team and we have the responsibility to do things right.

"Everything was done with authorization. Principally for the Italian man whose name I'm not going to say, it's a lie, I abided by all the protocols."

Ronaldo is facing a race against the clock to be available for Juventus' upcoming Champions League showdown with Barcelona. The Old Lady have drawn twice in the league in his absence and will be keen on having him back in time for their midweek showdown with Messi and Co. The player reportedly underwent a second COVID-19 test which once again came back positive, thus ruling him out for Wednesday's game. However, several sources claim that should Cristiano report a negative result 48 or 24 hours before the game, he could be given the green light to play.

 

Match details, result and original broadcast info

Juventus 0 - 2 Barcelona

October 28, 2020 4:00pmAllianz Stadium (Torino)

This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.

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