Chennai
As Theo Hernandez scored past Diogo Costa in the penalty shootout, Portugal legend Cristiano Ronaldo took the captain’s armband off and slowly walked away.
This time, unlike the FIFA World Cup 2022, he decided to save his tears.
A 3-5 loss to France in penalties for Portugal meant an end to Ronaldo’s chapter in the European Championships. But more importantly, it meant it was time for Roberto Martinez and his men to address a bitter situation – can the country’s highest goalscorer still contribute to the national side?
Portugal’s campaign at the Euros has been nothing short of underwhelming, given the talent it has in its squad.
Its final third consisted of quality players like Bruno Fernandes, who came into the Euros after a strong Premier League performance for Manchester United scoring ten goals and recording eight assists from 35 matches.
Attacking midfielder Bernado Silva’s six goals and nine assists were instrumental in Manchester City winning its fourth consecutive title.
But Martinez’s attempt to build a side around Ronaldo fell flat at Euro 2024, as Portugal managed to score just five goals in as many matches, winning three and getting knocked out on penalties in the quarterfinal.
Individually too, Ronaldo had a forgettable tournament, with the 39-year-old having 23 shots without scoring a single goal.
On the other hand, out of the four matches Portugal played without Ronaldo in 2024, they won three of them convincingly, scoring 19 goals in four matches, averaging a whopping 4.75 goals per match.
And that seeks clarification about the elephant in the room: is Ronaldo a liability for this Portugal side?
READ | Van Dijk to consider future for club and country after Dutch defeat
Almost two years back, at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Fernando Santos proposed this hypothesis by dropping Ronaldo from the starting lineup in its round of 16 clash against Switzerland stating that it was a strategic decision due to Ronaldo’s lack of rhythm throughout the tournament.
Ronaldo broke down after his penalty miss against Slovenia in the round of 16. | Photo Credit: GETTY IMAGES
What followed was an incredible 6-1 victory for Santos’ men over the Swiss. A frustrated Ronaldo watched as his replacement Goncalo Ramos scored a historic World Cup hat-trick.
Excluding a first-round penalty against Ghana, his performance in every other match was quite poor, and also didn’t have any other goal contribution in the tournament. A shock quarterfinal defeat against Morocco saw a devastated Ronaldo exit the field in tears.
Against Slovenia in the round of 16 at 2024 Euros, there was a sense of déjà vu when Ronaldo broke down after his penalty in extra-time was saved at 0-0, with the team facing a prospect of another embarrasing tournament ouster.
It took an incredible performance from goalkeeper Diogo Costa during the penalty shootout to save Ronaldo and Portugal’s blushes to secure a spot in the final eight.
Ronaldo has not scored a non-penalty goal in his last 11 World Cup and Euro appearances. His expected goals of 3.60 without scoring are the most ever, without conversion, at a major men’s tournament since 1980.
The graph above indicates how Ronaldo’s goal-scoring abilities have diminished in international tournaments, especially from 2022.
In the Euro 2024, Ronaldo struggled to score in one-on-one situations -- a facet of the game he specialised in during his prime years. Ronaldo also uncharacteristically set up Fernandes for a goal in a 2 v 1 scenario whereas in the past he would have had a shot himself..
Ronaldo will be 41 when the 2026 World Cup begins in North America.
Irrespective of whether he plays then or not, the weight of his legacy has loomed over the team for several years now and it might just be the right time now for Portugal to break out of his shadow.
Comments
SHARE