Portugal’s Ronaldo shakes off World Cup doubters, scores 2 after sluggish start
Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal celebrates scoring his team’s first goal during the World Cup match against Uzbekistan in Houston on Tuesday.
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Michael Steele/Getty Images
It did not take long for the questions to surface about the aging star.
Cristiano Ronaldo was virtually invisible in Portugal’s opening World Cup match against the Democratic Republic of Congo. Despite playing the entire game last week, he was essentially absent in the 1-1 draw. Gone were his flashes of excellence and otherworldly goalscoring ability.
The whispers about the 41-year-old turned louder. The drumbeat on social media and chatter from television commentators grew: should the team captain limit his minutes? Was he a distraction? Were his teammates deferring to him too much during the game?
As Ronaldo watched his fellow stars dominate at this thrilling tournament — Argentina’s Lionel Messi scored a hat trick in his opener, followed by two goals in Argentina’s second game; France’s Kylian Mbappe and Norway’s Erling Haaland have each scored four times — you could tell his poor performance bothered him.
On Tuesday, as he took the field against Uzbekistan, he looked like the Ronaldo of old. It took all of six minutes for Ronaldo to shake off the doubters. Deep inside Uzbekistan’s penalty area, Ronaldo struck a powerful right-footed volley into the net. He is now the first player (man or woman) to score in six World Cups.
Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal celebrates scoring his first of two World Cup goals against Uzbekistan. He becomes the first player to score in six World Cups.
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Charlotte Wilson/Getty Images
His face showed it all. The worry. The concern. It was all gone. Replaced by relief. A smile. Fist pumps. His teammates mobbed him. The crowd in Houston roared to life.
And he wasn’t done.
In the 39th minute, he streaked down the field and, with a perfectly-placed pass from Bruno Fernandes, struck it by the Uzbek goalkeeper. Ronaldo’s second goal of the game. His teammates tried to get him his hat trick, but it was not to be.
Still, Portugal defeated Uzbekistan 5-0. Portugal was back, and so is Ronaldo.
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The bigger issue here is on Tuesday, as he took the field against Uzbekistan, he looked like the Ronaldo of old. That changes the calculation.
Michael Steele is in a tough spot here, curious how they navigate it.
Reading that cristiano Ronaldo was virtually invisible in Portugal’s opening World Cup match against the Democratic Republic of Congo — hard to argue with the logic there.
What stands out is the whispers about the 41-year-old turned louder. That is the part worth paying attention to.
On Tuesday, as he took the field against Uzbekistan, he looked like the Ronaldo of old. Meanwhile cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal celebrates scoring his first of two World Cup goals against Uzbekistan.
The whispers about the 41-year-old turned louder. Meanwhile on Tuesday, as he took the field against Uzbekistan, he looked like the Ronaldo of old.
The fact that cristiano Ronaldo was virtually invisible in Portugal’s opening World Cup match against the Democratic Republic of Congo really puts things into perspective.
Think about it: on Tuesday, as he took the field against Uzbekistan, he looked like the Ronaldo of old. That speaks volumes.
So the bottom line is cristiano Ronaldo was virtually invisible in Portugal’s opening World Cup match against the Democratic Republic of Congo. Wonder how this will land.
The fact that the whispers about the 41-year-old turned louder really puts things into perspective.
What stands out is on Tuesday, as he took the field against Uzbekistan, he looked like the Ronaldo of old. That is the part worth paying attention to.
Basically the whispers about the 41-year-old turned louder. What matters is whether anything changes because of it.
What stands out is cristiano Ronaldo was virtually invisible in Portugal’s opening World Cup match against the Democratic Republic of Congo. That is the part worth paying attention to.
Reading that the whispers about the 41-year-old turned louder — hard to argue with the logic there.
Think about it: cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal celebrates scoring his team’s first goal during the World Cup match against Uzbekistan in Houston on Tuesday. That speaks volumes.