After a tumultuous week, Cristiano Ronaldo returned to the field and responded to criticism with a goal to break the deadlock for Portugal, in a 3-2 win over Ghana.
In the fifth World Cup, when he had entered the slope of his career, Ronaldo was always skeptical about his performance in Qatar. In particular, he entered the opening match of the 2022 World Cup with a series of controversies in just one week.
CR7 criticized Manchester United owner, coach Ten Hag and his teammates, and then had his contract terminated by the club. A series of Red Devils fans “turned around” and criticized their idols after just one night.
Bruno Fernandes: “Ronaldo likes to play football under everyone’s criticism.”
But as Bruno Fernandes said, criticism only makes Ronaldo stronger and even CR7 likes to face criticism, then prove everyone wrong with his performance on the football field. The Portugal – Ghana match is a typical example.
At the age of 37, attending the last World Cup of his life, and most likely also the last international tournament Ronaldo played for Portugal, he burst into tears while singing the national anthem. Maybe they were emotional tears, but they were also the pent-up emotions of the striker born in 1985 all year.
He spent most of the first half of the 2022/23 season on Man United’s bench. In the national team, except for his debut year in 2003 without scoring any goals, 2022 is the most difficult time for Ronaldo. Before coming to Qatar, he only had 2 goals for the Selecao. This achievement makes public opinion ask the question, does he deserve to take the starting role? And CR7 has the answer.
In the match against Ghana, he was the one who brought in and successfully scored a penalty in the 65th minute, paving the way for Portugal’s 3-2 final victory. CR7 became the first player to score in 5 World Cups, and also helped Portugal get its first 3 points in its opening matches since the 2006 World Cup.
Ronaldo is the first player to score in 5 World Cups
Ronaldo is currently Portugal’s youngest and oldest scorer at World Cups. He scored his first goal at the age of 21 and scored his most recent goal at the age of 37. CR7 also just increased the number of goals for Portugal to 118, becoming the top scorer of all time in the international arena. . That achievement will certainly not stop, because Ronaldo is still trying to change himself.
Before being replaced off the field, fans witnessed a completely different Ronaldo in a Man United shirt. He still tried to accelerate, missed a few opportunities, including a goal that was disallowed due to offside, but above all, Ronaldo is gradually getting used to the role of a typical center forward.
Luis Figo, a Portuguese legend, once advised Ronaldo to give way to the young strikers on both flanks, and that the 37-year-old striker must get used to controlling the penalty area, waiting for his teammates to make passes. . When meeting Ghana, Ronaldo played exactly like that, in the role of a true center forward.
The satellites around him also played well, just as Luis Figo expected. The pair born in 1999, Leao – Felix, scored goals together and continuously created opportunities for senior CR7. Not to mention, with top passers like Bruno Fernandes or Bernardo Silva, Ronaldo will have the opportunity to shine even more as a center forward in the upcoming matches.
CR7 is gradually getting used to switching from a striker playing cover, wide on both wings to a typical center forward position (less movement).
After the first series of matches in Group H, the leading candidate for the top spot in the group, Portugal, is predicted by the supercomputer of statistical firm Opta to have a 91.4% chance of reaching the round of 16. CR7 will also face Uruguay and South Korea to turn that rate into 100%, before thinking about higher goals.
