Cristiano Ronaldo missed out on Portugal’s UEFA Euro Qualifiers against Luxembourg due to a suspension received by him against Slovakia. However, Portugal managed to win the game by a thumping scoreline of 9-0. Portugal manager Roberto Martinez when asked about the team’s better performance without their number seven, denied any improvements in the team.
Roberto Martinez said – “Cristiano Ronaldo is a very important presence for this team. He has a lot of experience and his own ways”. ” We can’t afford any controversy”. Ronaldo and Pepe, have a pattern for working, and they give my team value”.
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PORTUGAL COACH ROBERTO MARTINEZ:
Is the team performing better without Ronaldo?
“No. Cristiano is a very important element for this team, Ronaldo has experience and a way of his own. “We don’t need to cause controversy.”
Ronaldo as well as Pepe. They have an infectious way… pic.twitter.com/3clKzy4LLd
— CristianoXtra (@CristianoXtra_) September 12, 2023
Meanwhile, after the match, Portuguese center-back Danilo Pereira said – “If CR7 was with us, the outcome of the match would be similar. He would have helped by assisting or scoring goals”. This magnificent performance by the team has certainly created an unwanted dilemma for the management. That being whether the performance is better without their number seven.
However, the manager and the senior center-back refused to entertain these thoughts, which shows the value that CR7 brings to the Portuguese national side. There have been many occasions when the player has single-handedly taken his team out of the jaws of defeat, and for sure the manager wouldn’t have forgotten that. Ronaldo’s teammate and the 40-year-old defender Pepe has also received the backing of the manager.
Will Cristiano Ronaldo return to the Portugal playing eleven against Slovakia?
Goncalo Ramos played in the match against Luxembourg to cover up for CR7’s absence. The striker bagged a brace in the first half of the game. His positioning and anticipation for the final ball also looked top-class during the match.
This was not the first time that Ramos had played in lieu of Portugal’s number seven. In FIFA World Cup 2022, the striker was on his first international start against Switzerland in the round of sixteen, and bagged a hat-trick, while Ronaldo was on the bench. Back then his hat-trick split the fan base a bit.
Goncalo Ramos is slowly but surely piling the pressure on the 38-year-old veteran. The young striker is in good form and has been linking up well with his teammates. It remains to be seen when Cristiano returns against Slovakia for Portugal’s next match in October, whether he gets slotted back into the playing eleven straight away or not.
With current goal-scoring form of Ramos, if the manager prefers to go with the same winning combination, the number seven might have to start the game on the bench. With the win against Luxembourg, Portugal got to the top of the standings in their group J of the UEFA EURO Qualifiers.