Juventus, Cristiano Ronaldo could miss on Champions League next season after Atalanta loss

Juventus' season has gone from bad to worse as not only did the reigning champions face another defeat to Atalanta on the weekend, but their talisman Cristiano Ronaldo was missing in the starting line-up. Ruslan Malinovskiy's strike in the eighty-seventh minute ensured that Atalanta took all three points and moved ahead of Juventus in the Serie A table. Here is the latest Cristiano Ronaldo injury update and a look at the Serie A table.

Cristiano Ronaldo injury update

The biggest worry for Juventus fans over the weekend was perhaps not so much the defeat to Atalanta but the injury concern to their talisman, Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo has been a key figure in Juventus' starting line-up and has missed only three Serie A games all season. With 25 goals this season, the Portuguese international is Serie A's top scorer and has scored four more than Inter Milan's Romelu Lukaku. However, Juve fans would be happy to know that the latest Cristiano Ronaldo injury update is not deemed serious as Ronaldo could feature against Parma on Wednesday, as stated by manager Andrea Pirlo.

"We’ll try to get him back for Wednesday. Cristiano’s flexor problem happened after the last game and he wasn’t able to push himself this week as he saw fit. We prefer not to take risks. Cristiano played more than was expected in the national team, otherwise he would have returned earlier. The accumulation of fatigue is a problem for everyone," explained Pirlo.

Serie A table: Juventus in fourth place

Inter Milan are nine points clear of second-place AC Milan and look favourites for this year's Serie A title. However, the fight for the remaining three Champions League spots could be interesting as six teams are still in the race for a top-four finish. 12 points separate AC Milan in second and Roma in seventh.

However, the biggest surprise is that reigning champions Juventus occupy fourth place in the Serie A table and are also at risk of losing out for Champions League football next season. With just two wins in their last five Serie A league games (1D 2L), Andrea Pirlo's men have witnessed a significant drop in form at the crunch time of the season. With 62 points after 31 games, Juve are two points ahead of fifth-place Napoli and are just four clear of sixth place Lazio, who have a game in hand. Hence, Juve have it all to do if they are to qualify for Champions League football next season.

Juventus European Super League

Despite Juventus' poor performances this season, Andrea Pirlo's men are one of the twelve teams to be included as the 'Founding members' of the European Super League. The other 'founding members' of the European Super League include Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan. As per reports, two German clubs and a French club are also expected to join the Super League as founding members.