Cristiano Ronaldo’s career with Portugal is in jeopardy after the team’s heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Morocco in the quarterfinals of the World Cup.
Ronaldo, who is 37 and one of the best players of all time, has never won the tournament, and he probably never will after Morocco beat Portugal in a stunning and historic upset on Saturday night in Qatar.
As Morocco’s bench ran onto the field in joy, setting Al Thumama Stadium on fire and starting parties all over Africa and the Arab world, the cameras quickly moved to the Portuguese captain.
By comparison, the difference was striking.
Ronaldo quickly left the field, took one last stoic look at the crowd, and then put his hand over his face to show how upset he was.
Notably, he left the field without anyone else with him and seemed to be crying as he walked past reporters, cameramen, and FIFA staff on his way to the Portuguese dressing room. He was almost all by himself.
Ronaldo hasn’t said anything about his plans yet.
Há um Mundial que Portugal já ganhou: o dos adeptos! Incrível o apoio e o carinho que temos sentido de tantos portugueses (e não só!) aqui no Catar, tão longe da nossa pátria. Continuem a apoiar nos bons e nos maus momentos, tudo faremos para retribuir com vitórias! Força,🇵🇹🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/LKSTQ9W3FB
— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) December 9, 2022
If Qatar is the end, it will be a bittersweet way for the Portuguese player to end a legendary career.
Ronaldo’s biggest moment at the tournament was when he became the only male player in history to score a goal in five different World Cups. This will be remembered for many years.
Ronaldo is the player who has scored the most goals in international soccer history. He has 118 goals in 196 games, which is a world record. He has also won the Ballon d’Or five times, as well as the European Golden Shoes four times and the League seven times.
He scored his 700th goal for his club, Manchester United, in October.
The 2022 World Cup, on the other hand, was a real up-and-down ride.
Notably, Ronaldo was taken out of Portugal’s first knockout round match, a 6-1 win over Switzerland, for the first time since 2008.
This was because he got angry when he was taken out of the team’s final group match against South Korea. Later, there were rumours that he had threatened to leave the Portuguese team in the middle of their World Cup run. Those claims were denied by Portugal.
On Saturday, Ronaldo was put on the bench again by head coach Fernando Santos. He was replaced by Goncalo Ramos, who scored a hat trick in the match against Switzerland and got the nod from Santos.
Santos said he didn’t regret not starting his captain for the second straight game.
“Cristiano is a great player, and he came in when we thought it was necessary. We Have No Regret.”
Ronaldo was not subbed onto the pitch until the 51st minute, and as he rushed onto the field, he swapped the captain’s armband with veteran defender Pepe before turning his attention to his remaining teammates, whom he desperately urged to press on.
His late-game appearance was met with loud boos at Al Thumama Stadium, where Morocco fans were far more numerous than Portugal fans. As the final whistle was getting closer, Ronaldo raised his arms to the Portugal fans in a last-ditch effort to get them excited.
In the 82nd minute, he almost gave his team a chance to score by setting up Joo Felix, whose shot was blocked by Morocco’s goalkeeper. In the end, Ronaldo and the team couldn’t make up for the damage done by Youssef En Nesyri of Morocco. His game-winning header in the 42nd minute was enough to send the Atlas Lions to the World Cup semifinals.
As a crying Ronaldo went to the locker room, his teammates, still in shock from the loss, stayed on the field to talk to the Portugal fans and thank them.
Martinez, who used to play for Spain, said he didn’t think Ronaldo would keep playing for the national team and that he could understand why the Portuguese superstar would feel that way.
Martinez told Al Jazeera that this was probably his last chance to win a World Cup. “With such a good player, he deserved to go to the World Cup, and he’s very upset.”
Portugal beat Ghana by one point and shut out Uruguay before losing 2-1 to South Korea in the group stages. Since they finished fourth at the World Cup in Germany in 2006, they haven’t made it past the 16th round. In 1966, Seleco das Quinas came in third. The team has never won the World Cup.
Ronaldo is leaving Qatar without ever having scored a goal in a knockout round. His club future is now uncertain.
Ronaldo was kicked off Manchester United’s team “immediately” a few days into the tournament after he gave an explosive interview the day before the World Cup in which he harshly criticized manager Erik ten Hag.
Ronaldo has had his share of problems on and off the field over the past 20 years, but he may be about to face the hardest part of his career.
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