Cristiano Ronaldo is once again at the center of criticism following Portugal’s World Cup opener against DR Congo. The girlfriend of a teammate has also expressed her frustration with CR7.
As if the disappointing 1-1 draw in their World Cup opener against DR Congo wasn’t enough to cause turmoil in Portugal, there’s also plenty of controversy brewing off the field. Cristiano Ronaldo, a player who continues to divide opinion, is once again in the spotlight.
The superstar offered little to impress in the draw against the Africans, and it’s not just since this match that more and more voices are suggesting the 41-year-old no longer has a place in the national team. Apparently, the girlfriend of teammate Joao Neves shares this view.
«Tell your GOAT to retire. He’s selfish,» Madalena Aragao responded to a user’s comment under an Instagram picture of her boyfriend Neves, who had demanded: «Your boyfriend is an idiot. Tell him to pass the ball to my GOAT.»
Hate Comments Against Joao Neves’ Girlfriend
Ronaldo has now gone ten games without a goal in European Championship and World Cup finals. Against DR Congo, he had only 25 touches in 90 minutes. «We know what Cristiano has done for our team and for the world of football. He is here to help us. He is no different from the others,» Neves had said about CR7 before the match.
Apparently, this praise was not enough for some fans of the Al-Nassr striker, who subsequently flooded girlfriend Aragao’s profile with hate comments. «Talk to your dog and tell him to respect Cristiano,» posted one user, while another alluded to Neves’ height of 1.71m: «Tell your dwarf friend that he has to respect Ronaldo!»
TV Pundits Criticize Ronaldo
TV pundit Thierry Henry, for instance, accused the five-time world footballer of blatant selfishness. «For all the people at home, one thing is very important,» said the former goalscorer on Fox: «The team has to score, not you.»
Former Freiburg coach Christian Streich also explained on ZDF that despite all his admiration for Ronaldo, he would probably do without him for tactical reasons. World Cup winner Christoph Kramer speculated that many Portuguese national players would secretly prefer to play without Ronaldo.
The Neves incident now bears at least some resemblance to a case involving Müller in Germany: in 2018, Lisa Müller, Thomas Müller’s ex-wife, made headlines. After Bayern Munich’s 1-1 draw against SC Freiburg, she posted a photo of Müller being substituted on Instagram. Her comment to then-coach Niko Kovac read: «More than 70 minutes until he has a stroke of genius.» Lisa Müller later apologized.