Cristiano Ronaldo abruptly left a post-match interview after the Portugal star was repeatedly asked about Lionel Messi’s goalscoring exploits at the World Cup, but did concede he had come through a ‘tough week’.
Ronaldo had seen his long-time rival Messi score a hat-trick in Argentina’s opening match of the tournament against Algeria, before netting a brace against Austria on Monday.
The performances were in stark contrast to Ronaldo’s first as he and Portugal laboured to a 1-1 draw with DR Congo last week.
Ronaldo had endured criticism following the display, while Portuguese media claimed the national team was on the brink of a ‘civil war’.
It followed accusations aimed at Ronaldo’s team-mates from his zealous fanbase – including from his sister, Katia Aveiro – alleging a plot to edge the ageing forward out of the game.
The pressure on Ronaldo and Portugal eased on Wednesday as he netted twice in a 5-0 win over Uzbekistan, which saw him become the first man to score in six different World Cups.
Cristiano Ronaldo walked out of a post-match interview after being repeatedly asked about Lionel Messi’s scoring start to the World Cup
Messi has taken the acclaim after scoring five goals in Argentina’s opening two matches
Ronaldo opened his account by scoring twice against Uzbekistan, making him the first man to score in six World Cups
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The goals, which made him Portugal’s record goalscorer at World Cups, still did not prevent him from being asked repeatedly about Messi post-match.
Ronaldo initially refused to answer a question from a reporter post-match after they began their question referencing Messi’s two goals against Algeria.
The 41-year-old then warned he would decline the second question from another journalist if he ‘did not accept’ the first one they asked.
Footage then showed Ronaldo walking out of the interview after another Portuguese reporter had asked about Messi.
‘I couldn’t care less about others, Mbappe also scored,’ Ronaldo responded as he walked off.
The Portugal captain, however, had conceded it had been a difficult week for both himself and his team-mates after the criticism following the draw in their opening match.
Ronaldo had shouted ‘I’m back’ in a message to his critics upon the final whistle against Uzbekistan, before suggesting it had felt like he had been ‘already retired’ amid the fallout from the DR Congo draw.
‘Just so you don’t forget, just so you don’t forget,’ he said of his message to the cameras.
‘I knew it. God helps those who work hard. It was a difficult, dark week, it felt like I was already retired from football, but I held on as I always do because I believe more in hard work than in football. It was difficult, I have to confess, but we’re back.
Ronaldo scored the opening goal after six minutes against Uzbekistan on Tuesday
Ronaldo, who added a second later in the first half, admitted post-match that it had been a difficult week for him and his team-mates following their opening game draw with DR Congo
‘Very happy, but for me the most important thing is the work the team did, the confidence we had,’ he said about his historic moment.
‘We took a lot of hits during the week, we knew that would happen. The team worked very well, we improved a lot. There are evils that come for good, as they say.
‘Speaking for myself, it’s always nice to break records, but my goal is to help the national team achieve its objectives. In this part, it was to get through the qualifying round, with four points I think we’ve already done it.’
The two goals make him the second-oldest player to score at a World Cup behind Cameroon forward Roger Milla, who was 42 when he scored at the 1994 tournament in the United States.
Ronaldo now has 145 goals for his country and 10 at World Cups.
His first came 20 years ago in Germany, when he scored against Iran in Frankfurt.
He added another in 2010 against North Korea, and a third against Ghana in Brazil four years later. Four more followed in Russia in 2018 – a hat-trick against Spain in the opening game and one more against Morocco.
He then became the first player to score in five editions of the tournament when he scored the only goal of the game against Ghana at Qatar 2022 – a record since matched by Messi at this tournament.
Ronaldo is now out on his own again with goals in six different World Cups.
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