Morocco Portugal live as Cristiano Ronaldo enters match in World Cup quarterfinals.
Cristiano Ronaldo was dramatically dropped for Portugal’s round of 16 tie against Switzerland at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
It came after his angry reaction to being substituted in the final group game against South Korea and amid suspicions that Portugal are a better team without him.
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It meant Portugal played in a tournament knockout game without Ronaldo in the starting line-up for the first time since the semi-finals of Euro 2000.
Portugal didn’t appear to miss him: they hammered Switzerland 6-1 with his replacement in the team, 21-year-old Goncalo Ramos, scoring a hat-trick.
The Athletic takes a look at why Ronaldo was dropped and what sort of involvement he could have in the rest of the tournament.
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What happened against South Korea?
A disgruntled Ronaldo was substituted in the 65th minute of Portugal’s final group game against South Korea.
He put his finger to his lips and made the universal gesture for “be quiet”.
He later claimed that he was responding to Korea’s Cho Gue-sung telling him to hurry up and get off the pitch, but whatever the reason, it’s not the first time the 37-year-old has reacted furiously to being brought off mid-game.
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What was Portugal manager Fernando Santos’ reaction?
Portugal’s boss Fernando Santos, speaking about the incident ahead of the clash against Switzerland, said: “Have I seen the images? Yes, I didn’t like it, not at all. I didn’t like it. I really didn’t like it. But from that moment onwards everything is finished regarding that issue. These matters are resolved behind closed doors. It’s resolved.
“Full stop on this matter and now everyone is focused on tomorrow’s match.”
Santos would not say whether Ronaldo would captain Portugal for the rest of the competition, saying: “I only decide who is going to be captain when I reach the stadium. I still don’t know what the line-up will be. That’s what I’ve always done and that’s what I’m always going to do and it’s going to be the same tomorrow. The other topic is solved. We have fixed that in-house and that’s it.”
Was Ronaldo being named on the bench a surprise?
In a purely footballing sense, no. Ronaldo is clearly past his best and his refusal to properly press has hugely negative consequences for Portugal. He is still a superb finisher, but at this stage it is largely accepted that his overall impact on Portugal is a negative one.
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But of course, he is Ronaldo — one of the best players ever and the top scorer in the history of international football.
On top of this, he is a global superstar with an unrivaled commercial pulling power. So, it was still a massive call.
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Who replaced him?
Ramos took Ronaldo’s place in the team. He plays for Benfica and made his fourth appearance for Portugal against Switzerland. Ramos came on as a substitute against Ghana and Uruguay in the groups and this was his first start at the World Cup.
And how did Ramos do?
Sensationally. He scored a hat-trick and was the main man as Portugal cruised through to the quarter-finals.
Remember, Ronaldo has never scored a goal in the knockout stages of a World Cup — and the man he was dropped for now has three.
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When was Ronaldo introduced and how did he get on?
Ronaldo came on in the 73rd minute and failed to get on the scoresheet. He powered a free-kick against the wall — a familiar sight — and then had a goal disallowed after clearly being offside.
He cut a frustrated figure for the rest of the match, failing to get on the end of balls into the box.
Ronaldo was only introduced late into the game (Photo: Getty Images)So, what next?
Portugal play Morocco in the quarter-finals on Saturday. Based on the evidence from the Switzerland game, it would seem incredibly unlikely that Ronaldo regains his place in the starting line-up — especially at Ramos’ expense.
It looks as though Ronaldo will only have a bit-part to play at the rest of the World Cup, a thought that will no doubt be eating him up inside.
Why doesn’t he have a club?
Ronaldo was effectively sacked by Manchester United last month after the fall-out from his inflammatory TV interview with journalist Piers Morgan.
In it, he criticised the club on a number of fronts and said that he has been mistreated by them.
As a result, he is playing as a free agent in Qatar.
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Will he join a new club after the World Cup?
Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal are reportedly interested in signing Ronaldo and are prepared to offer an eye-watering $209million (£173m) for his services. Whether Ronaldo accepts their advances is another matter.
A fierce competitor, he won’t like the thought of playing out the rest of his career in what would be viewed as semi-retirement — especially with Lionel Messi still playing in the UEFA Champions League.
But he has very few options and it could be that he accepts a final payday before ending his playing career.
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(Photo: Getty Images)
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