By Johnny Edward:
William Troost Ekong and his Udinese teammates will be hoping to stop Italian champions, Juventus from recording their eighth Serie A win on the bounce when they host the Bianconeri at the Stadio Friuli in Udine on Saturday, reports Completesportsnigeria.com.
Troost-Ekong who has made seven starts since joining Udinese, faces his biggest test in the Serie A so far with the return of Cristiano Ronaldo in a battle of the Bianconeris.
The 25 year old Nigeria international has helped Udinese to two clean sheets so far this season.
Ronaldo missed Tuesday’s Champions League win against Young Boys through suspension after he was sent off against Valencia, but will be restored back to the starting lineup amid an a court case over an alleged rape incidence in 2009, according to Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri in a pre-match conference on Friday.
Ronaldo has insists he did not rape Kathryn Mayorga at a Las Vegas hotel in 2009.
“I’ve known Cristiano for three months now and for over 15 years of his career he has shown to be a great professional, both on and off the pitch,” Allegri revealed during his pre-match conference.
“He has broad shoulders, so much so that he can be completely focused on the match.”
Udinese have recorded two wins two draws and three defeats so far in the Italian Serie A. They currently occupy 14th position with eighth points from seven games.
Juventus on their part sit atop the league table with the maximum 21 points from seven games and are already six points clear of nearest challengers Napoli.
Ekong is one of the 24 players invited by Nigeria’s Gernot Rohr for next weekend’s 2019 Africa Cup Of Nations double header qualifier against Libya in Uyo and in Tunisia.