Ronaldo Crisis Erupts As Star Walks Alone Amid Victory Celebration In Portugal

Cristiano Ronaldo cut an isolated figure as Portugal stunned with a 6-1 victory over Switzerland on Tuesday night walking off the pitch while his team-mates continued to celebrate their stunning performance on the field.

The Portuguese captain made his own way to the dressing room following the game having been dropped by coach Fernando Santos.

Portugal had no issues without him in the side as they raced into a 5-1 lead in his absence – with his replacement Goncalo Ramos scoring a hat-trick – before he was introduced having started on the bench in a knockout game for his country for the first time since Euro 2008.

Cristiano Ronaldo left the pitch on his own after the final whistle with his Portugal team-mates still celebrating

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner made his own way down the tunnel after the final whistle

Prior to kick-off much of the talk about Portugal’s last 16 clash naturally concerned the five-time Ballon d’Or winner as debate raged over why he had been dropped from the side.

Ronaldo’s entrance to the pitch had been greeted with loud cheers in the crowd.

Some – including Jamie Carragher – were of the opinion that his omission came as a result of his poor performances in the tournament so far.

Despite becoming the first male player to score at five World Cup tournaments, his only goal came from a penalty in the win over Ghana.

He had also been included in Sofascore’s worst team of the group stage ratings, where he was placed up front with an average rating of 6.37 across his three matches.

But others have pointed to the fact that there appeared to be words exchanged between Ronaldo and coach Santos as he was hooked against South Korea in Portugal’s final group game.

Santos left the player out of his starting XI just one day after insisting he ‘didn’t like’ the free agent’s angry reaction to being taken off in the 2-1 defeat to Son Heung-min’s side.

He claimed after the win over Switzerland that Ronaldo was dropped to the bench for tactical reasons rather than as a result of his conduct after being subbed against South Korea.

Santos had been facing increasing pressure to bench the star, with the likes of Holland legend Frank de Boer leading the calls for him to be left out if Portugal were to succeed in Qatar.

The Dutch legend said: ‘It’s not only Ronaldo, it’s everything that comes with him. Everybody has an opinion. The weight you get on your shoulders when you leave him out… you have to respond to that. Everybody will only talk about Cristiano Ronaldo and nothing else.

‘It’s not about the game you’re going to play against Switzerland, basically, it’s about why did you put him on the bench or why did you start with him.

‘You never do it right probably. If I were the manager I would put him on the bench.

When asked if he would be angry if, as a manager, Ronaldo swore at him as he supposedly did Portugal boss Fernando Santos, De Boer added: ‘It depends, what time and how he did it. You always have to see the whole picture.

‘But how he reacted lately, of course, there is already a negative vibe around him, so he must also be a little bit smarter at this moment.’

Portugal, however, were quick to prove that they would not struggle in the absence of arguably the greatest player in their long history.

Portugal won the European Championships in 2016 after Ronaldo left the pitch injured

Ronaldo’s absence may have grabbed the headlines, but his side were 5-1 up by the time he entered the fray in the 73rd minute of the match. 

Ramos, the 21-year-old Benfica striker who replaced Ronaldo, flourished in the vacant striker position, netting a hat-trick in just his first Portugal start.

Pepe, Raphael Gurreiro, and super sub Rafael Leao scored the other three as Portugal ran riot on Tuesday evening.

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