Juventus captain Gianluigi Buffon on Tuesday hailed Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo as the most decisive player in the world, a week after the Portuguese scored an outrageous bicycle kick against the veteran goalkeeper in the Champions League.

The Serie A leaders trail 12-times European champions Real 3-0 in their quarter-final tie and need to produce a remarkable performance in Wednesday’s second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu after Ronaldo’s brace and Marcelo’s late strike settled last week’s encounter.

“I don’t know if he is the most complete player because over the years I’ve faced some great footballers but right now he is the most decisive in his position, without a doubt,” Buffon told reporters at a news conference ahead of Wednesday’s game.

“He is remarkable, he’s so consistent, he always scores goals,” added Buffon of Ronaldo, who also scored twice against Juventus in last season’s 4-1 win for Real in the Champions League final.

Ronaldo is the all-time top scorer in the Champions League and has finished as leading marksman in the competition’s last five editions and again leads the way this campaign, with 14 strikes in nine games.