Cristiano Ronaldo scored with two clinical first-half finishes to help Juventus to a 3-1 victory over Udinese on Sunday afternoon, and put the Bianconeri back on-track in Serie A.

Juve need a victory after a recent draw with Sassuolo was followed by defeat at Lazio (3-1) last weekend, and Ronaldo was the driving force in an emphatic first-half showing. The 34-year-old struck sweet early finishes with both feet on 9’ and 37’ to make it five goals in his last four matches in all competitions.

Renato Sanches continued his excellent run of form with a late winner to give Lille a 2-1 victory over Montpellier in the French Ligue 1 on Friday night.

The Portuguese midfielder, who has earned strong reviews for recent performances, capped another impressive display with his first goal for his new club in the 84^th minute to give Lille all three points at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy.

Another exciting weekend of action across Europe saw as many as ten foreign-based Portuguese on target for their clubs. Leading the way was Diogo Jota who scored twice in Wolverhampton Wanderers’ 2-2 draw with Brighton in England.

Cristiano Ronaldo was also on the scoresheet as Juventus suffered a rare defeat, while Nélson Oliveira and Flávio Paixão continued their strong seasons in Greece and Poland with a hat-trick and brace respectively. On the managerial front, there was a big win for André Villas-Boas’ Marseille over Paulo Sousa’s Bordeaux, and José Mourinho and Tottenham Hotspur got back to winning ways.

France’s Ligue 1 is rapidly growing as a focal point for a number of the more interesting stories involving Portugal’s foreign-based contingent of coaches and players this season.

The early-season performances of André Villas-Boas and Paulo Sousa in charge of Marseille and Bordeaux respectively have lit up the league, while Renato Sanches may finally have found a stable home at Lille thanks to the guidance of coach Christophe Galtier.