It ends in tears.
Cristiano Ronaldo exited the World Cup in tears, and left the pitch as soon as the full time whistle was blown following Portugal’s loss to Morocco.
The Portugal captain started the game on the bench yet again but was brought on early in the first half as he watched his team trail 1-0.
Morocco had taken the lead thanks to a wonderful header by Youssef En-Nesyri, that Ally McCoist actually described as “Ronaldo-esque.”
From that point in they dug their heels in and defended with their lives and although Portugal huffed and puffed they couldn’t seem to carve out any decent chances.
A header from Pepe, the veteran defender, right at the death was probably their best chance in the whole game, bt it glanced wide of the post and the whistle went soon after.
Morocco are now the first African team to reach the semi-finals in World Cup history and more impressively, they did it the hard way.
🇲🇦1-0🇵🇹
Youssef En-Nesyri was the Moroccan match-winner as his emphatic header sent Morocco through to the World Cup semi-final.
📺 Watch live on @rte2 and @rteplayer: https://t.co/1CdVcPaz8Z#FifaWorldCup #RTEsoccer #MARPOR pic.twitter.com/Tus0mk9LjV
— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) December 10, 2022
Not only have they knocked out Portugal, but also sent Spain packing in the last round, so it hasn’t been a case of having a fortunate route to this the last four.
Amazingly this defeat means that Ronaldo will leave the World Cup for the final time, having played in five tournaments in total, and did not manage to score in the knockout stages.
interestingly this cursed stat was also shared by his long-term rival Lionel Messi, until the Argentina broke his duck and now has two under his belt.
Morocco will now play the winners between France and England, and although those two huge nations will see that as a huge opportunity, the African side will fear no one as they continue this fantastic journey.
Related links:
- Roy Keane and Gary Neville reignite argument about Cristiano Ronaldo
- Cristiano Ronaldo’s sister blasts Portugal boss; decision to start forward on the bench
- Portugal boss explains why he decided to drop Cristiano Ronaldo
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