Leonardo Bonucci snubs Cristiano Ronaldo & Lionel Messi as Juventus legend names ‘nightmare’ Serie A striker as toughest opponent

Juventus and Italy legend Bonucci announced his retirement from professional football at the end of the 2023-24 season after spending the final six months of his career at Turkish Super Lig giants Fenerbahce. The 37-year-old, who is widely considered one of the finest defenders in history, has played against some of the top footballers in the world including Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi – when they were on the books of Real Madrid and Barcelona, respectively. The Italian also shared a dressing room at Juve with Ronaldo for three seasons.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  However, while picking the toughest opponent he has faced in his illustrious career, Bonucci chose ex-Atalanta striker Duvan Zapata ahead of Ronaldo and Messi. The former Colombia international, who is now on the books at Torino, has spent the last 11 years in Serie A and played against Bonucci on multiple occasions.

  WHAT LEONARDO BONUCCI SAID

  Speaking on Sky Calcio Club, Bonucci said: “The one that hit me the most and the one I had more fun with was Luis Suarez because he hit and got hit without any problem. My nightmare, who didn’t make me sleep at night, was Zapata. God, before games against his Atalanta side, I couldn’t sleep at night. His power and physicality made him my nightmare. Then, I was lucky enough to play against so many champions. [Didier] Drogba, Ronaldo, Messi, [Fernando] Torres, and I forget others, but it was too good.”

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  WHAT NEXT IN SERIE A?

  Napoli are currently leading the Serie A title race with 16 points from their first seven matches. The league will be back in action after the international break with Genoa facing Bologna on October 19 in the first match of gameweek eight.