Cristiano Ronaldo has clarified that his irate reaction to being replaced in Friday’s 2-1 loss to South Korea was brought on by the actions of a rival player.
Ronaldo, who had been an unexpected starter given that Portugal had advanced to the next round, was replaced shortly after the hour mark with the score tied at 1. Before leaving, he had not scored, and as he left the field, cameras caught him expressing his disappointment.
“You’re in a f**king hurry to sub me off,” Portuguese reports had quoted Ronaldo as saying as he left the pitch.
“What happened was that, before my departure, the player from Korea told me to leave quickly. I told him to shut up,” Ronaldo explained afterwards via B24.
“He has no authority, he doesn’t have to give an opinion, he would speed up the pace if he were the referee. But there doesn’t have to be controversy, things stay on the pitch.
Fernando Santos, Portugal’s coach, immediately put an end to the rumours when asked what Ronaldo’s response meant and whether there was any tension in the team’s locker room.
“Cristiano Ronaldo left upset because a Korean player was trying to hurry him off and Pepe even had to intervene,” Santos told the press. “I heard what the Korean player was saying. If you see the images, you see Pepe going after the South Korea player because of that.”
Ronaldo still trails Eusebio by one goal in Portugal’s all-time World Cup scoring rankings; the 37-year-old has eight goals from the tournament to Eusebio’s nine.
He claimed to have headed the ball after a cross from teammate Bruno Fernandes earlier in the World Cup as he wheeled away in celebration during the 2-0 victory over Uruguay. The goal was awarded to Fernandes even though adidas’ motion sensors in the ball failed to detect a touch.
