After bouncing back from a lacklustre show in the FIFA World Cup 2026 opener, Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo has spoken on a potential face-off with Lionel Messi of Argentina in the knockout stages.
On Tuesday (June 23), Ronaldo scored two goals to help Portugal cruise to a 5-0 win in a Group K match in Houston and move on from their disappointing performance in the opening 1-1 draw with Congo.
Ronaldo scripted history to become the first male player to score at six World Cups. The 41-year-old was named the Man-of-the-match.
What Ronaldo said
After the game, Ronaldo was asked about facing Messi, with whom he has often been compared by experts and fans.
“I don’t know how to answer that. But, well, it would be awesome (to face Messi),” he said.
Also read: Ronaldo returns with brace, sets new milestone; World Cup of titans begins
“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,” he added.
‘Improved’ performance
Ronaldo, however, snapped at a journalist for asking another question about Messi.
“Next question,” he replied when asked about Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland leading the race for the tournament’s Golden Boot.
He also dismissed criticism for his below-par showing in Portugal’s opening game. “The most important thing is the team, being united with them,” Ronaldo said. “We can’t control the rest that comes from outside. We know that when we don’t win, we get attacked, especially me.”
“We improved,” Ronaldo said in Portuguese. “It’s life, sometimes you will have challenges and the main goal is always to improve and that’s what we did.”
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