Cristiano Ronaldo silenced his critics with a emphatic two-goal display as Portugal thrashed Uzbekistan 5-0 in Houston on 23 June, with the 41-year-old becoming the first player in history to score in six different World Cups before sprinting to the television cameras to shout “I’m back, I’m back” in an outpouring of raw emotion.
The goals ended a drought of 10 matches without scoring at major tournaments and moved Ronaldo past Eusebio as Portugal’s all-time leading scorer at World Cups, taking his overall tournament tally to 10 goals. His first came in the sixth minute, a neat near-post finish from six yards after converting Joao Cancelo’s low cross. His second, placed precisely into the far corner from Bruno Fernandes’ perfect pass, prompted a jubilant sprint to the sideline where teammates mobbed him as coach Roberto Martinez watched on with a smile.
In between Ronaldo’s two strikes, Nuno Mendes scored a superb free kick, deceiving Uzbekistan goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov and the entire stadium by taking the set piece quickly while Ronaldo acted as a decoy. Nematov then fumbled the ball into his own net in the second half before Rafael Leao added a late fifth in front of a full house of 68,777 fans.
Uzbekistan thought they had pulled one back after the first hydration break when Azizjon Ganiev struck a superb effort, only for VAR to disallow it for a foul on Cancelo.
Ronaldo was careful to frame the achievement in team terms. “The team performed really well and improved a lot. Records are always nice but my goal is always to help the national team achieve its objectives.”
Coach Martinez said the performance reflected a significant improvement in decision-making and finishing after the frustrating 1-1 draw with DR Congo in the opener. “This was the response we had in the dressing room. There are times when you need a game like the first one in order to grow in the tournament. Today we saw a team with the same attitude and commitment, but with greater maturity.”
Portugal, with four points from two matches, face Colombia in their final Group K fixture. Uzbekistan, without a point and on the brink of elimination, play DR Congo in their last group game.
