<p>Cristiano Ronaldo hit back at his critics with a quick-fire hat-trick as Juventus brushed aside Cagliari 3-1 on Sunday, five days after their Champions League elimination, while Inter Milan moved nine points clear at the Serie A summit.</p>.<p>Portuguese star Ronaldo bore the brunt of the criticism for Juve's latest European flop after failing to score in either leg of the last-16 defeat by Porto, while also being partly at fault for what proved to be the winning goal.</p>.<p>But the 36-year-old scored a header after less than nine minutes at the Sardegna Arena, added a second from the penalty spot, and completed a 'perfect' treble on 32 minutes with a fine left-footed strike.</p>.<p>Defending champions Juventus are 10 points behind Inter Milan, who beat Torino 2-1 earlier Sunday, but with a game in hand.</p>.<p>Andrea Pirlo's side pulled just one point behind second-placed AC Milan, who host Napoli later Sunday, as they try to keep their push for a 10th consecutive Scudetto alive.</p>.<p>Ronaldo broke the deadlock early on, rising high to nod in a Juan Cuadrado corner.</p>.<p>But he could have been sent off after a quarter of an hour, receiving only a yellow card for dangerous play as his boot struck Cagliari goalkeeper Alessio Cragno in the face while attempting to meet a Federico Chiesa cross.</p>.<p>Ronaldo's second came from the penalty spot in the 24th minute after being brought down by Cragno.</p>.<p>He completed the 57th treble of his career when he collected Chiesa's pass and blasted a left-footed strike into the Cagliari net, at the only stadium in the Italian top flight where he had not previously scored.</p>.<p>Ronaldo is the leading scorer in Serie A with 23 goals this season, ahead of Inter's Romelu Lukaku, who has 19.</p>.<p>It was his third hat-trick for Juventus since joining in 2018, after also putting three past Cagliari in the league last season and in the Champions League against Atletico Madrid in 2019.</p>.<p>Before kick-off, Juventus chief football officer Fabio Paratici dismissed talk about Ronaldo's future.</p>.<p>"It makes me laugh. I would never have imagined discussing the value of Cristiano Ronaldo," said Paratici.</p>.<p>"It's a privilege to have him with us, he's part of our future."</p>.<p>Cagliari, two points above the relegation zone, pulled a goal back through Giovanni Simeone in the 61st minute.</p>.<p> Lautaro Martinez scored a brilliant 85th-minute winner for Inter in a tight game against 18th-placed Torino.</p>.<p>Antonio Conte's Inter once again needed their strike duo of Lukaku and Martinez to find a way to win in Turin.</p>.<p>Christian Eriksen came off the bench on 56 minutes and had an immediate impact, playing a part in the move which resulted in Torino defender Armando Izzo fouling Martinez in the penalty area.</p>.<p>Lukaku fired home the resulting spot-kick in the 62nd minute.</p>.<p>Inter looked to be wobbling when Antonio Sanabria pulled Torino level eight minutes later, finishing off goalmouth scramble.</p>.<p>But Martinez snatched the victory by getting his head to an Alexis Sanchez cross for his 14th league goal this term.</p>.<p>Inter stretched their winning run to eight matches to move further ahead of AC Milan.</p>.<p>"Victories like these are crucial," said Inter assistant coach Cristian Stellini, with Antonio Conte serving a touchline ban.</p>.<p>"The three points were also vital for Torino who gave little away."</p>.<p>Injury-hit Roma dropped to fifth, two points behind Atalanta and the Champions League berths after falling 2-0 at 19th-placed Parma who earned their first win since November 30.</p>.<p>Valentin Mihaila opened the scoring on nine minutes following a cross from fellow Romanian Dennis Man.</p>.<p>Hernani added a second from the spot in the second half to secure a valuable win which moves Parma a point behind Torino, who have played two games fewer because of a coronavirus outbreak, and three from safety.</p>
<p>Cristiano Ronaldo hit back at his critics with a quick-fire hat-trick as Juventus brushed aside Cagliari 3-1 on Sunday, five days after their Champions League elimination, while Inter Milan moved nine points clear at the Serie A summit.</p>.<p>Portuguese star Ronaldo bore the brunt of the criticism for Juve's latest European flop after failing to score in either leg of the last-16 defeat by Porto, while also being partly at fault for what proved to be the winning goal.</p>.<p>But the 36-year-old scored a header after less than nine minutes at the Sardegna Arena, added a second from the penalty spot, and completed a 'perfect' treble on 32 minutes with a fine left-footed strike.</p>.<p>Defending champions Juventus are 10 points behind Inter Milan, who beat Torino 2-1 earlier Sunday, but with a game in hand.</p>.<p>Andrea Pirlo's side pulled just one point behind second-placed AC Milan, who host Napoli later Sunday, as they try to keep their push for a 10th consecutive Scudetto alive.</p>.<p>Ronaldo broke the deadlock early on, rising high to nod in a Juan Cuadrado corner.</p>.<p>But he could have been sent off after a quarter of an hour, receiving only a yellow card for dangerous play as his boot struck Cagliari goalkeeper Alessio Cragno in the face while attempting to meet a Federico Chiesa cross.</p>.<p>Ronaldo's second came from the penalty spot in the 24th minute after being brought down by Cragno.</p>.<p>He completed the 57th treble of his career when he collected Chiesa's pass and blasted a left-footed strike into the Cagliari net, at the only stadium in the Italian top flight where he had not previously scored.</p>.<p>Ronaldo is the leading scorer in Serie A with 23 goals this season, ahead of Inter's Romelu Lukaku, who has 19.</p>.<p>It was his third hat-trick for Juventus since joining in 2018, after also putting three past Cagliari in the league last season and in the Champions League against Atletico Madrid in 2019.</p>.<p>Before kick-off, Juventus chief football officer Fabio Paratici dismissed talk about Ronaldo's future.</p>.<p>"It makes me laugh. I would never have imagined discussing the value of Cristiano Ronaldo," said Paratici.</p>.<p>"It's a privilege to have him with us, he's part of our future."</p>.<p>Cagliari, two points above the relegation zone, pulled a goal back through Giovanni Simeone in the 61st minute.</p>.<p> Lautaro Martinez scored a brilliant 85th-minute winner for Inter in a tight game against 18th-placed Torino.</p>.<p>Antonio Conte's Inter once again needed their strike duo of Lukaku and Martinez to find a way to win in Turin.</p>.<p>Christian Eriksen came off the bench on 56 minutes and had an immediate impact, playing a part in the move which resulted in Torino defender Armando Izzo fouling Martinez in the penalty area.</p>.<p>Lukaku fired home the resulting spot-kick in the 62nd minute.</p>.<p>Inter looked to be wobbling when Antonio Sanabria pulled Torino level eight minutes later, finishing off goalmouth scramble.</p>.<p>But Martinez snatched the victory by getting his head to an Alexis Sanchez cross for his 14th league goal this term.</p>.<p>Inter stretched their winning run to eight matches to move further ahead of AC Milan.</p>.<p>"Victories like these are crucial," said Inter assistant coach Cristian Stellini, with Antonio Conte serving a touchline ban.</p>.<p>"The three points were also vital for Torino who gave little away."</p>.<p>Injury-hit Roma dropped to fifth, two points behind Atalanta and the Champions League berths after falling 2-0 at 19th-placed Parma who earned their first win since November 30.</p>.<p>Valentin Mihaila opened the scoring on nine minutes following a cross from fellow Romanian Dennis Man.</p>.<p>Hernani added a second from the spot in the second half to secure a valuable win which moves Parma a point behind Torino, who have played two games fewer because of a coronavirus outbreak, and three from safety.</p>