It was the penultimate question of a 15-minute press conference but one that had everybody nodding in agreement, internally at least.
At almost 1am local time in a bunker inside the Frankfurt Arena, Roberto Martínez leaned forward into the microphone and reached for a virtual shield to steel himself.
"Do you feel your game gets too predictable with all those crosses inside the box towards Ronaldo?" came the question and regardless of what the Portugal manager may say, the answer is a resounding big, fat yes. Or as the Portugal supporters mimicking Cristiano Ronaldo outside the ground before kick-off might say: "Siuuu!"
Make no mistake, Ronaldo is insanely, infinitely watchable, box office in good and bad. There were the tears that streamed down his perfectly chiselled face during the extra-time interval against Slovenia as he began to fully digest the potential ramifications of Jan Oblak's magnificent left-hand penalty save.
There was the moment in the ninth minute when he juggled the ball under pressure from a touchtight Petar Stojanovic, doing a series of keepy-uppies seemingly purely to entertain the crowd before pushing a pass into João Palhinha. There was a tidy backheel for Rafael Leão, one of those tasked with slinging in crosses for Ronaldo's forehead. Ronaldo had five high-power shots, the majority unhinged, game-breaker free-kicks no matter the distance.
Denne historien er fra July 03, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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Denne historien er fra July 03, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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