Before Euro 2024 began, Cristiano Ronaldo was talked about as a remarkable man for all seasons. This was his sixth appearance at a Euros, including being part of Portugal's 2016 triumph. Only teammate Pepe has prevented him from becoming the oldest outfielder in the history of the competition.
Ronaldo has scored 49 goals in 47 games for Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, and despite coming up to his 40th birthday, that led us to believe that he still had what it took to make an impact at Euro 2024.
But plying his trade away from European eyes in a lower standard of league looks to have been misleading: Ronaldo has been a shadow of his former self all summer, and his showing in Portugal's goalless draw against France in the quarter-finals the worst of the lot.
Why Spain Have The PERFECT System To Win The Euros
Cristiano Ronaldo against France: Anonymous, off the pace, wasteful
This was a shockingly anonymous performance for Ronaldo. In 90 minutes he managed just 26 touches of the ball, the fewest of any of the 22 starters bar France goalkeeper Mike Maignan – which does not exactly offer any solace.
Six of those touches ended with him handing the ball to France, and the bulk of his time on the ball was in harmless positions out on the left wing not far past the halfway line. That's not too uncommon for Ronaldo – it's been a pattern of his play for years – but he usually balances it out with plenty of action inside the box as well.
Once a towering aerial presence with a monstrous vertical leap, Ronaldo contested just one aerial duel (which, to be fair, he won). His teammates were unable to find him in dangerous areas, and he was unable to get to it, with Dayot Upamecano usually the player keeping him under close attention.
Ronaldo’s big issue earlier in the tournament was the astonishing number of shots he had without success, including his penalty in extra time in the round of 16, which was saved by Slovenia goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
The 39 year old had racked up 19 efforts – eight on target – for a total of 2.8 expected goals going into the France game. That’s a higher xG than the entire Albania, Serbia and Scotland teams each managed in their three group stage games, and more per 90 minutes than 16 nations were able to muster.
But Ronaldo’s big issue here was that he barely got any chances at all, managing his first effort of the game after 63 minutes and his second on 85 minutes.
Nobody had fewer touches in the first-half than Cristiano Ronaldo 😳Just 11 touches against France so far.#BBCEuros #Euro2024 #PORFRA pic.twitter.com/Ie8WUpkQLOJuly 5, 2024
Ronaldo was evidently even taken off free kick duties after Roberto Martinez seemingly twigged he’s been absolutely dreadful at them throughout his Portugal career: he’s scored just one at major tournaments despite representing them at every once since Euro 2004, with his only successful effort coming against Spain in a 3-3 draw at the 2018 World Cup.
When Portugal won a free kick in shooting range in the first half, Rio Ferdinand bet fellow BBC pundits a bottle of wine that it would be Bruno Fernandes, and not Ronaldo, who stepped up to take it: he was correct.
Ronaldo did get a chance to try his luck with five minutes of normal time left, after Fernandes had been substituted off. He duly smashed it straight into the wall. He's 61st unsuccessful effort in a row.
After a couple of bits of banana to prepare for half time, Ronaldo rather inexplicably continued on into extra time, Martinez evidently preferring the evidence of his having previously been good over the overwhelming evidence of this summer that he is now, in fact, a bit rubbish.
There was a distinct feeling of Soccer Aid about Ronaldo's next effort as he sent Upemecano to the shops before racing onto a promising delivery from the right, only to send the ball flying up into the increasingly mild Hamburg air.
Ronaldo then resorted to sticking closer to a centre-forward position when Portugal were on the ball, but the only way he was able to get away from his man and find space was to wander uselessly into offside positions that the French were, of course, only too happy to let him occupy. The idea, evidently, was to try and get Upemacano to lose sight of him so he could suddenly burst back in front of him and catch him on the hop; it didn't work.
On the occasions he went the other way, dropping deep to try and offer a passing option, Ronaldo was routinely ignored by his teammates, much to his visible consternation.
In their pre-tournament friendlies, with Ronaldo given extra time off thanks to the late finish of the Saudi Pro League season, Portugal looked like a side who did not quite know how to play without Ronaldo. In the group stage and against Slovenia, they almost entirely looked like a side desperately dependent on him coming up with some of the old, faded magic.
Now, Portugal look like a team who simply wish Ronaldo wasn't there anymore. As expected, Ronaldo stepped up to take Portugal's first spot kick in the shootout after the dullest of goalless draws, dillying and dallying in his run-up to cause Maignan just enough hesitation to fail to reach his shot to the bottom corner, despite guessing correctly.
Ronaldo, finally, had done his part for the night... but it all proved in vain as Joao Felix struck the post with Portugal's fourth penalty. France remained unfaltering, sending Portugal home from Germany, and potentially ending the most glorious of individual international playing careers with a three-week long whimper.
Get a free live stream to watch Euro 2024 from anywhere in the world and catch the final stages of the summer's big tournament
More Euro 2024 stories
The incredible stats behind Cristiano Ronaldo’s free-kick conversion rate
We have the run-down on Euro 2024 stadiums, with info on host cities, capacities, and everything you need to know.
We also have a list of the Euro 2024 favourites, with best odds on nations to win European Championship in Germany, while these are the best Euros games ever and these are the best pundits ever.
