European Championship Round of 16: Crying Ronaldo struggles with Portugal into the quarter-finals
The Portuguese celebrate after the last penalty was converted. Photo
© Uwe Anspach/dpa
The victory against Slovenia was only decided after a penalty shootout. Ronaldo almost became a tragic hero. Now it’s time for a duel with France.
After the happy ending in the penalty shootout, all Portuguese players rushed to goalkeeper hero Diogo Costa – with Cristiano Ronaldo as the last one. After a dramatic evening, including tears shed after a missed penalty, the 39-year-old superstar can continue to dream of being crowned European champion again.
The favourite beat outsider Slovenia 3-0 on penalties in the round of 16 and will now face France with Kylian Mbappé in the quarter-finals on Friday (9 p.m.) in Hamburg. No goals were scored in 120 minutes.
That was also Ronaldo’s fault. The 39-year-old Portuguese captain failed to save a penalty in the 105th minute from Slovenia’s goalkeeper Jan Oblak and then shed tears of disappointment on the field. “That rarely happens to me, so I was incredibly sad and had to cry. But now I’m very happy,” said Ronaldo after the final whistle.
Portugal’s goalkeeper becomes a hero
Ronaldo is still waiting for his first goal of the tournament – but he showed that he had the nerves to do so in the penalty shootout in front of 46,576 spectators in the Arena Frankfurt. After he scored, he apologized to the fans with a gesture. Goalkeeper Diogo Costa became the match winner, saving three shots from the Slovenians after extra time. “These are the great moments in football. I’m so happy that I was able to help my team,” said Diogo Costa.
“He saved us,” praised Ronaldo, the goalkeeper. It was a relief – especially for the superstar, who had to be consoled by his teammates after his missed attempt from eleven meters at half-time in extra time. “There are moments that you can’t explain, where the passion just takes over,” he said.
His record at his sixth European Championship remains at 14 goals. Ronaldo could have won the match single-handedly. Shortly before the end of regular time, his shot from a free position was blocked by Oblak (89′). Nevertheless, coach Roberto Martinez’s team was spared an exit in the first knockout round like Italy and Belgium experienced.
Ronaldo as a fixed point in attack
All eyes on Ronaldo: Every time the former world footballer touched the ball, the noise level in the stands rose. This was also the case when the centre-forward jumped just under a cross in the 13th minute. Is this the last major tournament appearance of the Saudi professional from Al-Nassr FC? While his colleagues swirled around him and looked for gaps, Ronaldo mostly held his position as a fixed point.
Meanwhile, European Championship veteran Pepe (41) held things together at the back, repeatedly intervened energetically and dared to venture as far as the opponent’s goal. The Slovenians initially struggled to get close to the penalty area. This also applied to Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig, the youngest in the outsider’s squad at 21. Coach Matjaz Kek had called for more support for the talented striker: “We have to help him.”
For the first time since independence, the selection of the country with only two million inhabitants had advanced to the knockout phase of a European Championship finals. The 2-0 victory against Portugal in the friendly match in March had given the team additional courage before kick-off. However, the Portuguese allowed their opponents to run a lot with their clever distribution of space.
Harmless CR7 free kicks
The favorites repeatedly tried to cross Ronaldo, who finally got his head on the ball after half an hour. Oblak had no trouble, however. But then the world star celebrated his first free kick in a wide-legged pose – and fired a powerful shot just centimeters over the bar.
On the other side, Sesko made his first real appearance just before half-time, but his shot from 20 metres landed right in the arms of goalkeeper Diogo Costa. Both teams went into half-time with Portugal’s Joao Palhinha hitting the outside of the post.
Superior Portuguese not compelling enough
Five days after the 2-0 defeat to Georgia in the last group match, Ronaldo’s team continued to be dominant and wide awake, but simply couldn’t find a gap. When the record European Championship goalscorer took another free kick, Oblak blocked the ball with both fists. The Atlético Madrid keeper and his teammates defended their penalty area with many legs.
After an hour, Sesko escaped veteran Pepe on a counterattack, but failed to score. In the 115th minute, Sesko was denied by Diogo Costa from a free kick. So the game went to penalties, where the Portuguese had a late happy ending despite the Ronaldo drama.
dpa
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