It is normal for Cristiano Ronaldo to shine and help his team win. But when his team loses, he will be criticized first and most.

Ronaldo and Portugal say goodbye to Euro 2024 – Photo: REUTERS

The 57,000-capacity Volksparkstadion in Hamburg, Germany, was split into two halves after the quarter-final match between France and Portugal at Euro 2024. 

Half the French were ecstatic over the victory and half the Portuguese were devastated by the defeat. But Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t drift to either extreme. 

When the ball from Theo Hernández’s (France) foot on the 11m mark pinned into the top corner of the Portuguese team’s goal, all the French players ran around celebrating like crazy. The camera lens immediately turned to Cristiano Ronaldo.

CR7 slowly walked away from the Portuguese team who were standing sadly in the center circle. 

Ronaldo did not show any specific emotion, instead his face showed shock with his lips constantly moving. Ronaldo’s hand was still tightly gripping the captain’s armband.

Ronaldo was like a defeated conqueror, speechless, helpless but familiar and lonely among tens of thousands of people. 

Age has defeated Ronaldo at Euro 2024 – Photo: REUTERS

That moment tore the hearts of Ronaldo’s fans apart. The icy feeling sealed the souls of the fans, because this was the last image of him in the Euro arena. 

We can love, hate or indifferent to Ronaldo, but this moment will be history in world football.

It’s easy to praise Ronaldo or criticize him, but not everyone can sympathize with what CR7 had to endure during Euro 2024. 

Ronaldo wants a happy ending to his glorious career. At the age of 39, despite criticism about his form and health, Ronaldo stepped onto the pitch and fought like a young man.

He wanted to use the results to prove the opposite. That was what Ronaldo had pursued throughout his career and made him great. The conqueror does not need support, is alone, only victory is his friend. 

The two oldest players at Euro 2024 and in the history of the tournament, Pepe and Ronaldo, had to say goodbye from the quarter-finals – Photo: REUTERS

CR7 has been criticized for being selfish in trying to stay in the Portuguese team, taking the starting position from his more energetic and in-form juniors. That is not wrong. Ronaldo is actually the weak point of the Portuguese team at Euro 2024. 

He has not made any outstanding contributions when coach Roberto Martinez built him as the team’s center of play. No coach would trust a player who is almost 40 years old that much, if he were not Ronaldo.

But if he stops because of criticism, then he is not Ronaldo. Ronaldo has achieved almost all the glory in his football career thanks to criticism and desire. Without that desire, football would not have Ronaldo. Lionel Messi also has no one to compare.

Without that desire, Ronaldo would just be an ordinary Portuguese man, taking his children to school every morning and finishing work late in the afternoon. 

Ronaldo ignored everything people said about him to fight with the Portuguese team. He did not want to be a reserve or stand aside from the victory or defeat of his team. In the past five matches, Ronaldo only missed the last 5 minutes against Georgia. 

Everyone will miss Ronaldo after he has the last Euro of his career – Photo: REUTERS

It was his choice and the Portuguese team accepted it as a tribute to the best player in the history of football in this country. Some people are satisfied, some are not, but Ronaldo deserves it. 

Ronaldo will be criticized for Portugal’s failure at Euro 2024. Ronaldo is no stranger to that. He has endured unkind words throughout his career and thanks to that, he has become the motivation to conquer every peak. The more criticism, the stronger he becomes. 

Go ahead and criticize Ronaldo, because this might be the last time CR7 gets that. Fans will remember! Soon, it will be impossible to criticize Ronaldo.