It’s no exaggeration to say that Cristiano Ronaldo had more of an impact on Juventus’ record-extending ninth straight Serie A title than anyone else.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner matched a record by scoring in 11 straight league matches before the break for the pandemic and quickly regained his form during the restart by reaching the 30-goal mark after only 30 games in his second season in Italy.

For his 31st goal, Ronaldo scored the opener when Juventus beat Sampdoria 2-0 on Sunday to seal the title with two games to spare. Federico Bernardeschi added the second in the 67th minute.

Ronaldo needs only one more goal to break a tie for the Juventus single-season record for league goals set by Felice Borel in 1933-34.

“Records are always important, but the important thing is that the team wins,” Ronaldo said.

“He has this incredible ability to recover,” Juventus coach Maurizio Sarri said. “I think it’s just in his DNA, his ability to project himself on to the next goal, every time.”