If you need an example of just how cruel football can be, look no further than Spain 1-0 Portugal.
Last night, Mikel Merino scored a late winner in the round of 16 to dump Portugal out of the World Cup. The Arsenal midfielder didn’t just break the hearts of the Portuguese national team, he broke the hearts of hundreds of millions across the globe.
So many were desperate to see Cristiano Ronaldo crown his career with the one trophy that had eluded his illustrious career: the World Cup.
As the final whistle blew and the cameras panned to the Spanish celebrations, a lot of the world wasn’t really watching.
In a moment, the memories of the twinkling teenager dancing down the wing at Old Trafford came rushing back.
The memories of every magical moment in the whites of Real Madrid, the stripes of Sporting Lisbon and Juventus, the blood red of Manchester United and even the yellow and blue of Al Nassr.
Then in a moment, as the cameras panned back to Ronaldo with his hand over his mouth, trying his best to hold back the tears, those back at home would probably be lying if they said they weren’t doing the same.
After the match, Ronaldo spoke to the media and said: “The biggest title I won with the national team was EURO 2016. To me, winning the EUROs is as valuable as the World Cup. It carries the same weight and importance.”
We all know that’s not true. This was the pinnacle; it always has been.
The end of an era
The boy from Madeira, who made so many fall in love with the beautiful game, missing out on football’s greatest prize. It does feel like a horrible injustice, but that’s football. It’s a cruel game.
The absence of a World Cup doesn’t make Ronaldo any less of the player he is. He remains and will always remain one of the greatest of all time.
His journey must not be considered a failure because that is the furthest thing from the truth. Before Ronaldo, Portugal only had three World Cup appearances and had never won a major trophy.
Since Ronaldo, Portugal have won three major trophies and feature consistently in the World Cup. Although his time is up, Ronaldo has left behind a football culture that wouldn’t exist without him. Thanks to him, there is now a generation of fantastic footballers coming through the Portuguese national team who will undoubtably bring the country more success.
Ronaldo changed Portuguese football forever.
Spain go through to quarters
Spain’s 1-0 win sees them head to the quarter-finals, where a clash against Belgium awaits, following the Red Devils’ 4-1 win over co-hosts USA.
But I think there very few people outside of Spain thinking La Roja’s progression to the quarter finals this morning.
Many are accepting the reality that for Ronaldo, the World Cup was never meant to be.
Written by Isabelle Martin
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