Four years ago in Qatar, Portugal fans hoped it was finally over. It wasn’t. And now, at the 2026 World Cup, the same tired debate is consuming a squad talented enough to win the whole thing — all because one man refuses to accept that his time has passed.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s hollow performance in the 1-1 draw with Congo DR — 29 touches, three shots, none on target — was not the display of a player who belongs in a starting eleven at a World Cup. It was the display of a 41-year-old living off reputation while his teammates carry the weight.
The mystery isn’t why people are questioning Ronaldo. The mystery is why coach Roberto Martinez keeps ignoring what’s right in front of him.
When Fernando Santos dropped Ronaldo for the knockout rounds in Qatar, it was shocking but rational. There was clear reasoning behind it. Ronaldo, then 37, looked off the pace. The decision made sense. Santos had the courage to act. Martinez, so far, does not.
Instead, the Spanish coach arrives at every press conference armed with statistics, as though numbers alone can mask what the eyes plainly see. “Having a player who has 25 goals in the last 30 games for the national team is a gift,” Martinez said in February. He points to Ronaldo’s Nations League goals, his 30-goal domestic season for Al Nassr, his top-scorer accolade. What he glosses over is where those goals came from — the Saudi Pro League, widely regarded as a significant step below Europe’s elite — and the far more damning stat: Ronaldo hasn’t scored from open play at a major tournament since June 2021.
Against Congo DR, when Portugal desperately needed a goal, Ronaldo was caught selfishly snatching at a chance rather than releasing the ball to a better-positioned Bruno Fernandes. Thierry Henry, a man who knows a thing or two about finishing, didn’t mince words. “The team needs to score, not you need to score,” Henry said pointedly. It was a damning indictment — not just of one moment, but of a mentality increasingly at odds with what a team sport demands.
Paul Scholes, who played alongside Ronaldo at Manchester United, was even blunter. “I think there’s only one position a 41-year-old player should start on the pitch,” Scholes said. “And that’s the goalkeeper.”
And yet Martinez digs in. After keeping Ronaldo on the pitch long past the point of usefulness against Congo DR, he defended the decision with breathtaking stubbornness. “It makes no sense to take out the best goal scorer in world football in a game where you need goals,” Martinez said — a statement that might carry more weight if Ronaldo were actually scoring, or even threatening to.
Some Portugal supporters have grown so bewildered by Martinez’s immovable stance that whispers have started circulating about his motives — specifically, that he’s protecting his relationship with Ronaldo ahead of a rumored move to take over at Al Nassr after the tournament. It may be unfair speculation, but when decisions defy football logic, people go looking for other explanations.
What is inarguable is the cost. Portugal possess what many consider the finest midfield at this World Cup and are genuine contenders to lift the trophy. But that potential is being slowly suffocated by a sideshow that their players are visibly being coached to manage.
“When you have a squad like this, especially with a player like Cristiano, we have to be prepared, a little more than usual,” fullback Diogo Dalot admitted on Saturday. “The fact that we had that pre-World Cup conversation to prepare ourselves for these moments meant that when it actually happened, we were able to send the message that the group is unshakable.”
It speaks volumes that Portugal’s preparation for a World Cup included dedicated sessions on how to handle the Ronaldo circus. That is time and mental energy that should be going elsewhere.
When Martinez is pressed on Ronaldo’s continued selection, he occasionally lets the frustration show. Ahead of Euro 2024, he snapped back at a reporter with a rhetorical question: “Do you know how many minutes Cristiano played for Al Nassr last season?” When told he’d started every game, Martinez offered a wry smile. “You have answered your own question,” he said.
But minutes played and impact delivered are two very different things. And in a tournament where margins are razor-thin, Portugal cannot keep carrying a passenger — however legendary — in the hope that one moment of magic justifies the cost.
Ronaldo faces Uzbekistan in Houston on Wednesday, ten major tournament games without a goal and running. The debate will not die down with more limp performances. Dalot is right that the sooner these difficulties arise, the sooner they can be put to bed — but only if Martinez finds the courage that Santos eventually found in Qatar.
