Online Reporter
Cristiano Ronaldo declared “I’m back” and said those “attacking” him should never write him off after making World Cup history in a 5-0 hammering of Uzbekistan on Tuesday in Houston.
The 41-year-old, under pressure to deliver after a barren recent run at major tournaments, pounced after six minutes to become the first player to score in six World Cup campaigns.
He added a second with a smart finish before halftime as Roberto Martinez’s side ran riot against limited opposition.
The five-star display was in stark contrast to a stale 1-1 draw with the Democratic Republic of Congo in which Ronaldo was laboured and largely anonymous. That sparked renewed calls in some quarters for Martinez to drop the veteran, with Ronaldo, the coach and the team all facing flak at home.
Ronaldo shouted into a television camera “I’m back, I’m back”, and said after his two-goal display: “I can say it was a very tough week, a difficult week, a week in which public opinion was very harsh on us, on all the players, especially on the coach.
“But it’s always like that, it’s fine because when you think about it, it’s already 23 years I’ve been a professional and whenever things don’t go well it’s, ‘Cristiano, he’s finished, he’s old’.
“But well, it was a good response from me and my teammates, which is what we wanted.”
Ronaldo, the leading scorer in men’s international history with 145 goals, has been compared unfavourably with the likes of nemesis Lionel Messi and other star forwards such as Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Harry Kane so far at the World Cup.
Put to him that he had now joined the party in North America, Ronaldo said: “I always arrive, even if it’s later, but I’m there.
“So, it’s about continuing my work, I truly believe in what I do. My career has always been like this, it wasn’t going to change.”
He told Martinez and his teammates, who are on the cusp of the last 32, to ignore the outside criticism.
“Because we know that when we don’t play well or don’t win, we’re always attacked, especially me,” he said.
“But as I said before, I’m already used to it and I carry on.” Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo became the first man to score in six different World Cup campaigns when he struck against Uzbekistan on Tuesday in Houston.
The 41-year-old Portugal skipper, under pressure to find the net after a barren run at major international tournaments, pounced from close range after just six minutes to create a piece of World Cup history. It is testament to Ronaldo’s longevity, the former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus superstar having scored his first World Cup goal in 2006, against Iran.
Ronaldo faced flak after being largely anonymous in a disappointing 1-1 draw with the Democratic Republic of Congo that started Portugal’s World Cup title bid in North America.
In his previous 10 games at major competitions coming into the Uzbekistan match, he had zero goals and one assist. His travails in front of goal were in glaring contrast to the likes of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Harry Kane.
Ronaldo, widely recognised as one of the best players in football history, made his international debut in 2003. Now with Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia, he scored 28 goals in 30 league games this season.
Ronaldo nearly struck after just three minutes in Houston, narrowly failing to make contact at the far post after a cross by Nuno Mendes.
Ronaldo slapped the turf, but the frustration was to be only temporary. – SuperSport
