Commendable! Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventus give up Rs 750 cr in wages during COVID-19 crisis

As the world continues to fight against the novel coronavirus, good news is coming from Italy where La Liga defending champions Juventus have decided to let go of €90 million ($100 million or around Rs 750 crore) in wages to help the club during the coronavirus crisis. In a statement, the Italian giant said that star player Cristiano Ronaldo, his Juventus teammates and coach Maurizio Sarri have agreed to forgo the mentioned amount in. 

The club said the money amounted to four months’ worth of wages, a third of players' salaries. Ronaldo, the highest-paid player in the Italian league, will give up €10 million. Juventus, which is top of Serie A and leading Lazio by one point in the race for the Scudetto, is one of Europe's biggest clubs and by far Italy's most successful domestically.

"Juventus would like to thank the players and the coach for their commitment at a difficult time for everyone," the club said in a statement.

To recall, Italy is one of the worst-hit countries in the world. It has the highest death toll right now with 10,000 fatalities. The country has at least 90,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus. The entire country has been placed in lockdown. 

Juventus is not the only Italian club to extend help in these difficult times. Fellow Serie A side AS Roma has been delivering emergency care packages to its most vulnerable supporters. Roma has started delivering its "Roma Cares" packages to every season ticket holder over the age of 75.

Meanwhile, Ronaldo has donated €1 million ($1.1 million) to help fight coronavirus in his native Portugal. The money will fund two intensive care units for Lisbon's Hospital de Santa Maria and will equip one ward in Porto's Santo Antonio hospital with 15 intensive care beds.

All sports in Italy have been cancelled until at least April 3.