Cristiano Ronaldo scores with assist from Aaron Ramsey as Juventus open Serie A season with 3-0 win vs Sampdoria

CRISTIANO RONALDO began where his record-breaking last season left off by clinching Juventus' 3-0 opening-day win over Sampdoria in boss Andrea Pirlo's first match.

And it was Aaron Ramsey who teed up Ronaldo's late goal, suggesting the Arsenal legend can make up for his patchy debut campaign in Serie A.

Former Atalanta winger Dejan Kulusevski grabbed a debut opener early on.

But Claudio Ranieri's Sampdoria defended well for the rest of the first period and created reasonable chances after the break.

That all changed, though, once Leonardo Bonucci doubled the champions' lead on 78 minutes, pouncing on a rebound when Weston McKennie's shot was saved.

Ronaldo's fine finish then made up for him hitting the bar earlier as the home side impressed in their first match since Maurizio Sarri's sacking as manager in August.

Sampdoria can feel slightly hard done by to lose so heavily.

But they had no-one in front of goal like Ronaldo.

The ex-Real Madrid and Manchester United frontman, 35, ended last term with Juve's highest individual tally for a season - 37 goals.

And on the way he reached 50 Serie A strikes quicker than any player before, needing just 61 matches.

This time out, his match-sealer against Sampdoria rewarded Juventus' dominance after they spluttered over the line in the title race last month.