Italian press hail Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku's heroics

Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick against Cagliari and a goal from a superb header against Sampdoria
Romelu Lukaku scored a brace as Inter Milan beat Napoli
The two teams are Serie A league table toppers and Inter is ahead with better ‘goal difference‘
Italian newspapers hailed the impact, the two strikers have for their respective teams, in Tuesday’s editions
Ciro Immobile is leading the race for golden boot

Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku were hailed as ‘lions in winter’ after they scored a hattrick and a brace for Juventus and Inter Milan, respectively.

Like previous years, Juventus are looking to win their ninth consecutive Serie A title but found themselves in second place in Serie-A table.

After Ronaldo netted a hattrick in a 4-0 home win against Cagliari and Lukaku got a brace in a 3-1 win away at Napoli, the duo dominated the front covers of Italian newspapers on Tuesday morning.

Gazzetta dello Sport described the two strikers as ‘The Wise Men’ as they celebrated the Juventus-Inter rivalry continuing ‘without breath’ after 18 matches. This weekend marks the halfway point in the season. So the Italian media is growing increasingly confident that this fight for the title can continue right until the final matches.

Corriere dello Sport ran with the headline, ‘Lions in Winter.’ It pinpointed Lukaku’s ‘merciless response’ having earlier seen Ronaldo fire Juventus back to the top of the table ahead of Inter’s match in Naples. It was Inter’s first win against Napoli at the Stadio San Paolo in 23 years, another sign of the strength in this side built by Antonio Conte.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku on the Cover

Italian press hail Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku's heroics European Leagues Serie A

Tuttosport looked to highlight the impact of Lukaku’s strike partner, Lautaro Martinez after he netted the other goal in the 3-1 win. The paper described them as ‘the golden couple’ in attack for Conte.

It was a vital win for Inter, restoring them to the top of the league on goal difference once again. For Juventus, it proved to be one of the most convincing performances since Maurizio Sarri arrived to replace Massimiliano Allegri in the summer.

It also represented Ronaldo’s first hattrick since joining the Turin-based club from Real Madrid, and both he and Lukaku are also in contention for the Capocannoniere (awarded to Serie A’s top scorer).

Ronaldo’s hattrick took his league tally to 13 while Lukaku’s brace later in the day took his total to 14. Both, however, are some way behind Lazio striker Ciro Immobile, who has 19. Every week brings a new level of importance in the title race, with both sides desperate not to concede ground to the other before they meet in Turin on March 1.