New Delhi: With elation pasted on his face like a young boy who has scored his first goal, Cristiano Ronaldo raced to the Portugal bench, falling into the arms of his teammates and hugging Diogo Dalot.
The sixth minute strike against Uzbekistan in World Cup Group K in Houston was an appropriate lift-off, especially after he had failed to score for 10 consecutive matches at major tournaments. However, it was only as the team moments were ending that Ronaldo, somewhat hesitantly, moved up and produced his iconic siuuu goal celebration. He did it more to oblige photographers and all those fans in Ronaldo shirts in the stands.
The hesitation was understandable, even for one of this century’s footballing greats with little left to prove to the world. The celebration was more spontaneous when his second goal arrived in the 39th minute, once again demonstrating a precise finish.
For two decades, Ronaldo has taken on and surmounted pressure, rising like his header with an impossible hang. He is just finding that combined skill, athletic level, and sharpness of mind and vision that made him the face of the game along with Lionel Messi.
It would be tough to call Tuesday night’s double in a 5-0 rout of Uzbekistan some sort of vindication. Not for the player who will forever be so special but many from his corner are moving away because they feel that at 41 he has stayed on in an exceptionally good Portugal team.
Not many can complain about his fitness, but strangely, his amazing skills seem to have deserted him. This decline was already visible in the 2022 World Cup. This was when his hat-trick and control lifted his side to a sensational 3-3 draw against Spain in Qatar.
Portugal’s Spanish coach, Roberto Martinez, as well as many pundits, backed Ronaldo amid heavy criticism after he fired blanks-or rather, didn’t fire at all-in the 1-1 draw against DR Congo in the opening game.
Even for a player who has weathered criticism throughout his career and shown the readiness to take on the world and deliver on the pitch, the latest criticisms, memes, and sharp social media takedowns, many of them imagined, seemed to have weighed him down.
Tuesday night wasn’t just two more goals. It marked the historic achievement of becoming the first player to score in six World Cups in a row. He reached double figures (10). “I’m back, I’m back!” he shouted into the TV cameras, one for all his detractors. Criticism was surely justified, insults definitely not.
Messi, who turned 39 on Wednesday but has banked all five of the goals scored by Argentina to win their two games and qualify for the Round of 32, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haland, Vinicius Jr and Harry Kane are all seen very much as the present. Not so Ronaldo, and that will hurt him, as Ronaldo has channelled his defiance into success so many times in the past.
Ronaldo addressed the questions after the win.
“It’s been a difficult week, a dark week without kicking a ball, but we dealt with it as we always do because we believe in our work. It was difficult, but we’re back,” he told the media.
I can say it was a very tough 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’.”
The “23 years like this”, was the elaboration for his “I’m back!” comment to the camera.
“I’m very happy but the most important thing is the work the team did and the confidence it gives us. Obviously, personal records are always nice but my goal is always to help the team achieve its objectives.”
Sweeping in Joao Cancelo’s cross early demonstrated the stealthy movement in the penalty box and sharp finish hasn’t entirely deserted him. And running on to Bruno Fernandes’ slick through ball, and placing it neatly in the far corner of the net, said better service will lead to better results. This in a team that surprisingly hasn’t got top strikers, like it has in the rest of the pitch.
Ronaldo came close to a hat-trick twice, once in either half. Had he converted, he would have joined an elite bunch to score two World Cup trebles.
Next up, Colombia is the sterner test at the weekend in the final group game. With some weight off his shoulder, Ronaldo can play more freely and hope to sign off on a high.