The BBC have come in for a wave of criticism after mocking Cristiano Ronaldo for his missed penalty in Portugal’s European Championship round of 16 win over Slovenia.
In Frankfurt on Monday night, Diogo Dalot won a spot kick in the first-half of extra-time, but the superstar saw the following shot saved by Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
Subsequently Ronaldo was seen crying over the miss - but despite being in a state of distress, the BBC poked fun at Ronaldo’s expense.
They called him “Misstiano Penaldo” in their highlights before Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker posted a doctored image replicating the iconic image of Paul Gascoigne from Italia ‘90, only using Ronaldo crying with the former Tottenham forward looking towards the bench.
Ronaldo helped Portugal progress into the quarterfinals of the competition later on by scoring the first goal in the shootout, but the BBC’s mockery has left a sour taste in the mouths of a number of former pros.
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Former Chelsea captain John Terry posted on Instagram: “BBC this is a disgrace!”
After the match, Portugal coach Roberto Martinez praised Ronaldo for his conduct throughout.
The former Everton man said: “He (Ronaldo) doesn’t need to care that much and that’s why I thank him for being the way he is, for caring for the group ... I was certain he had to be the first penalty taker and show us the way to the victory,” Martinez told reporters.
“I think we all felt very proud of our captain. The dressing room was delighted with what he’s doing. I think he gave us all a lesson, that you need to live every day as if it’s the last one.
“You need to have real high standards and never give up - life and football gives you difficult moments, and the way he reacted is a real example that we are very proud of in Portuguese football.”
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