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Four years ago, those who watched the fixture between Portugal and Spain witnessed one of the most memorable individual performances of recent World Cups.
Cristiano Ronaldo carried his national side on his shoulders to earn a 3-3 draw with the then-European champions. The Portugal star scored a hat-trick that day in Sochi, topped with an incredible free-kick in the 89th minute.
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On Tuesday night in Braga, Ronaldo had another hat-trick against the Spanish. Only this time, it was made up of wasted big chances. Even worse, it was Spain’s Alvaro Morata who got the winner in the 87th minute to send his side top of their group and qualify for the Nations League finals next summer.
Portugal lost their first competitive game against Spain since the 2010 World Cup and Ronaldo had a night to forget.
Read more: Portugal World Cup 2022 squad guide: Young stars, ageing stars, and a familiar debate about Ronaldo
Not that Portugal’s best-ever player was the sole cause of the result. Portugal’s performance was way below the standards they should desire. They were too passive without the ball and unable to make the difference against a much-rotated Spanish side. Spain coach Luis Enrique made six changes – including stars Pedri and Gavi – in a starting line-up that will not resemble the side he fields at the World Cup in November.
Ronaldo started his rusty night in front of goal just after half-time: Diogo Jota set him up with a perfect through ball but his first-time shot did not go past Unai Simon.
The Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper’s display can’t be overlooked. The 25-year-old was the reason Spain stayed in the game until the 87th minute. Premier League stars Jota and Ruben Neves can testify to that from the attempts they had stopped in the first half.
But when Italian referee Daniele Orsato blew the final whistle, Ronaldo’s frustrating evening stood out.
“Normally, he scores. Tonight, he didn’t. This is football,” said Portugal coach Fernando Santos.
Santos also blamed himself for substituting Liverpool winger Jota too soon. “I took him out because he was tired, but the change I had to make was not Diogo Jota, who was playing very well,” he said. “I put in Vitinha (Jota’s replacement on 79 minutes) and Joao Mario to try to have more control of the ball, but we just couldn’t.”
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In the 71st minute, Jota had found time to gift Ronaldo his second big chance. It was another opportunity on the break and again saw the 37-year-old on his own against Simon.
There were no defenders to beat and, when a shot on target felt inevitable, Ronaldo took too many seconds to figure out his decision. Left-back Jose Gaya was quick enough to recover and leave the Manchester United forward wishing he’d taken the shot sooner.
Cue Ronaldo frustration. He raised his arms and then stared at the sky with a furious expression.
The Estadio Municipal de Braga had been craving a big Ronaldo performance. He was the most-applauded footballer by a distance when Portugal started warming up. A vociferous cry of “Siuuu” echoed around the stands when his name was announced. An extra level of anticipation accompanies every touch of the ball he has on the pitch.
The Portugal fans didn’t appear overly concerned by his inconsistent start to the season with United. Ronaldo has only one Premier League start in their first six games and has played just 38 per cent of the possible league minutes.
But perhaps Ronaldo was influenced by that.
There is no footballer in the world who wouldn’t notice such a lack of minutes, even one as fit as Ronaldo, and after two missed chances he was not only looking imprecise but anxious to prove a point.
Minutes passed by and Luis Enrique’s tactical changes off the bench hit Portugal. Spain went to the next level thanks to Pedri, Gavi and Nico Williams coming on – the latter becoming the youngest Spanish player to register an assist in the Nations League – and went from dull to daring with Morata’s goal.
“We had to be more daring in the first half. I think it was my fault. I limited my players on my preparation to the game and didn’t allow them to express themselves better. In the second half we have improved, but not just because of the impact of the substitutes. We are a team and everyone is important,” said Luis Enrique.
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With Spain on top and the final whistle approaching, Ronaldo had his third and last chance of the game. This was possibly the least clear of them all and fell to him at a bad angle inside the box. That, though, is normally more than enough for Ronaldo, but not last night. Simon saved again and secured Spain’s golden ticket to the final four.
Portuguese news outlet A Bola stated after his performance that Ronaldo’s game time for his national team “might have to be reduced”.
While Spain were celebrating the victory on the pitch, TV cameras focused on Ronaldo. He was walking down the tunnel, shaking his head, wondering how such a poor night could have been possible. It begs the question of why in Braga, like in Manchester this season, Cristiano Ronaldo could not be Cristiano Ronaldo.
(Top photo: David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)
