Allegri Explains Cristiano Ronaldo's Goalscoring Troubles At Juventus

Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri believes Cristiano Ronaldo is still getting used to the Italian style of play as the latter's goal drought continued over the weekend.

Ronaldo joined Juventus from Real Madrid in a €100 million ($114 million) move this summer, on the back of 450 goals in 438 games for the reigning Champions League winners. However, he drew another blank as he went goalless for the third game in a row, though the Serie A champions did go on to defeat Parma 2-1 on Sunday.

It means the Portugal captain has now attempted 23 shots without a goal, the most in Europe's top five leagues, with Nantes midfielder Valentin Rongier behind him on 15 shots.

Despite his problems in front of goal, Allegri is confident he will adapt and get back to scoring after the international break.

"Italian football presents different problems and it takes time," Allegri said, via ESPN. "He's not getting the rub of the green at the moment either -- the ball is not bouncing right for him or he's shooting just off target. We'll all be fresher after the break and that's when the real season starts."

Despite Ronaldo playing in Portugal, England and Spain, Allegri believes playing in Italy is a completely different situation altogether.

"Serie A is a league where the teams defend carefully," Allegri explained. "I don't want to say that it's better than other leagues in Europe or not. Let's just say that the teams are very strong in defense and the coaches are very good."

"They study every match to try not to concede space to the other teams. Everyone puts Serie A down but it's very difficult for a player to score 40 goals a season. [Gonzalo] Higuain did it once, but was an extraordinary feat. Usually the top scorer in Italy scores 26 or 27 goals. And usually the top scorer in Italy never wins the title. So maybe it's better for us."

Meanwhile, Zlatko Dalic, who led Croatia to the World Cup final in July, was highly critical of Ronaldo's absence in the ceremony awarding the UEFA Player of the Year award last week.

The 33-year-old's former teammate in Croatia captain Luka Modric won the award, with Ronaldo's agent Jorge Mendes reacting angrily toward the snub, claiming his client deserved the honor.

"Ronaldo not attending the UEFA ceremony and those comments about Luka winning it...it is not worthy of my comment!," Dalic said. "It only proves what I keep saying: Ronaldo is an egotist and I'd never want him in my team! He is the kind of player that only thinks, 'no matter if we lose, the only thing that matters is that I score a goal!'"