Superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has sent a powerful message his Juventus team-mates insisting 'there is no excuse for anything' after they were pummelled 3-0 by Fiorentina in their Serie A match.
Andrea Pirlo's side lost more ground in the Italian top-flight title race following the devasting defeat on Tuesday that has seen them follow further behind in the chase for the league trophy.
In their their first home defeat of the season, goals from Dusan Vlahovic, Martin Caceres and an own goal from Alex Sandro ensured that the 10-man Juventus suffered the shock result.
The defeat, compounded by AC Milan's 3-2 win over Lazio, leaves Pirlo's side 10 points adrift of Stefano Pioli's side as they bid to win their tenth successive Scudetto.
Several punters have predicted the further slide of the giants with some even offering no deposit bonus for matches involving the Turin-based side for their upcoming matches.
And Ronaldo, the league's top scorer with 12 goals, has urged his team-mates to 'give more of ourselves' as the Old Lady look to close the gap on their rivals in 2021.
'Yesterday, with a poor performance and a result far from acceptable, we closed our scheduled games for 2020, a special year in many particular ways,' Ronaldo wrote on Instagram.
'Empty stadiums, COVID protocols, postponed games, long stoppages and a very tight calendar.
'But this is no excuse for anything. We know that we have to give more of ourselves, in order to play better and to win in a more consistent way. We are Juventus! And we simply cannot accept anything less than excellence on the pitch!
'I hope this short stoppage may help us to come back stronger and more united than ever, because the season is still far from over and in the end we believe that we will, once again, celebrate with our tiffosi.
'Believe in us, trust our team as much as we trust you, and we will deliver!'
Ronaldo's remarks come after Pirlo tore into his stars following Tuesday's defeat, as the club legend accused his side of 'having their mind on the holidays'.
'What happened with the red card cannot be used as an alibi,' he said, speaking to Sky Sport Italia. 'The result was not down to Fiorentina's attitude but the lack of ours.
'When this is the case you face bad situations like this. In games before Christmas it can happen then you have your mind on the holidays. We were unfocused and could not recover.'