Cristiano Ronaldo announced his comeback with a stellar brace against Uzbekistan in Portugal’s second outing in the FIFA World Cup 2026. The Portuguese talisman had a horror outing against Congo Dr in the first game when he failed to inspire the Seleรงรฃo das Quinas as they settled for a 1-1 draw.
However, he scored twice as Portugal went on to beat Uzbekistan 5-0 in their second outing to ignite a fire to their campaign. Ronaldo came hard on the critics after his performance and also opened up on the prospect of facing Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the knockout stages of the tournament.ย
The two have never faced each other in the World Cup, and this tournament presents probably the final chance to pit the legends against each other. “I don’t know how to answer that,” Ronaldo said when asked about facing long-term rival Messi. “But, well, it would be awesome.”
“The most important thing was today, winning to advance, and being ready for what’s next … The main goal was to advance from the group stage, and we did it.”
Ronaldo opens up on criticism from Congo DR game
The 41-year-old spoke on the backlash he and his team received in the aftermath of the 1-1 draw with the minnows, emphasising that it was a “very tough and difficult week”. “It was a very tough and difficult week, with public opinion being very harsh on all the players, especially on me and the coach [Roberto Martinez],” Ronaldo said. “But I don’t mind. I’ve been in this profession for 23 years now, and whenever things go well, ‘Cristiano is doing great,’ but when they go badly, ‘Cristiano is retired, he’s too old.’ It will always be like that. But we responded well today.”
He was also asked about the age-long comparison of him with Messi.ย “Next question,” he snapped, on being asked about Messi, Kylian Mbappรฉ and Erling Haaland, all of who are fighting for the Golden boot after consistent strikes.
Portugal will now be up against Colombia in their final league stage game on Saturday and will look to win the group as Colombia are ahead of them with six points after their win over Congo, while Portugal sit second with four points.
ALSO READ |ย Cristiano Ronaldo stars as Portugal decimate Uzbekistan in FIFA World Cup 2026 with dominant 5-0 win