In what is already one of the most anticipated — and important — matches of the season, Cristiano Ronaldo will make his Serie A debut to open a season that experts say has the potential to restore the Italian league to a place atop the hierarchy of the sport, according to the BBC .
Ronaldo’s new club Juventus — the winners of seven straight Serie A titles — travel to Verona where they will face last-season’s 13th-place finisher, Chievo, in a game that will stream live from Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi on Saturday.
“Finally the world is talking about the Italian league again. In the ’80s and ’90s we represented the top. Then we lost our way and weren’t capable of investing in infrastructure,” said Fabio Capello, who managed the Old Lady from 2004 to 2006.
“With Ronaldo we can attempt to lift our head up. But it’s not enough on its own. We need to have the strength and intelligence to exploit the Ronaldo stimulus and give our game an impulse again.”
While the Turin-based club have dominated Serie A, winning the last seven titles in a row, the arrival of Ronaldo signals that the Juventus club have their sites set on Europe this season.
Ronaldo has won an extraordinary five UEFA Champions League trophies, SI.com reports.
Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. Central European Summer Time at the 39,000-seat Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi in Verona, Italy, on Saturday, August 18. In the United Kingdom that kickoff time will be 5:00 p.m local. Fans in the United States can log in to the live stream at noon Eastern Daylight Time on Saturday, or 9 a.m. Pacific. Fans in India can catch the live stream starting at 9:30 p.m local.
Ronaldo won four Champions League titles with Real Madrid, including the last three straight, plus one more title from his days at Manchester United. By contrast, Juventus have won the European Championship only twice, and only one time in the Champions League era which began in 1992. That victory came 22 years ago –in 1996 — according to UEFA.com .
“I don’t see the Champions League as an obsession,” Ronaldo said when he signed with Juventus in July, ESPN reported. “It’s not an obsession but a dream. I’m here to help Juventus make it come true. It’s possible.”
Watch a preview of Saturday’s Chievo Verona vs. Juventus Italy Serie A opener featuring the debut of Cristiano Ronaldo, in the video below, courtesy of ESPN .
To watch a free live stream of the Chievo Verona vs. Juventus Italy Serie A opener featuring the debut of Cristiano Ronaldo in a Juve shirt, use the stream provided by ESPN+ , the new, online subscription sports network of the sports media giant ESPN. The ESPN+ streaming network is available with a subscription fee of $4.99 per month, but comes with a seven-day free trial. If the trial is canceled before the weeklong period, football fans can watch the Chievo vs. Juve showdown at no charge.
In the United Kingdom the live stream all be carried on Facebook by Eleven Sports , but keep in mind that due to Football League blackout restrictions, the live stream will not start until 15 minutes into the match.
In Italy itself, the Chievo Verona vs. Juventus Italy Serie A opener will be streamed live by Sky Go Italia . In Canada, every 2018/2019 Serie A match will be streamed live on the DAZN sports platform. And in India, Sony LIV will carry the live stream of Ronaldo’s Italian debut match.
