Dalot defends Ronaldo after World Cup criticism

Diogo Dalot came to Cristiano Ronaldo's defense by explaining that the team was well prepared for criticism of Portugal's captain in the World Cup. Portugal began their Group K campaign with a 1-1 draw against the Democratic Republic of Congo at the Houston Stadium, with Yoane Wissa leveling the score after Joao Neves opened the scoring in the sixth minute. Ronaldo participated in the entire match, but struggled to make an impact on the game, failing to hit the target with any of his three shots. Now, he has 10 consecutive games without scoring in major tournaments for Portugal (World Cup/EUROs), the longest streak of his international career. Ronaldo's last goal in either competition was against Ghana in the first round of the 2022 World Cup, and he has been criticized for his performances at international level. However, Dalot defended the 41-year-old, stating: "It's very simple. In the dressing room, in our stadium, we had the opportunity before arriving at the World Cup to have a detailed conversation about this. It was almost as if we had already anticipated this would happen.


"Of course, when you have a squad like this, especially with a player like Cristiano, we need to be prepared, a little more than usual. The fact that we had that pre-World Cup conversation to prepare for these moments meant that when it actually happened, we were able to send the message that the group is unshakable – we knew this would happen. We knew we would face difficulties and criticism. Sometimes unfair, sometimes false, and often exaggerated." Cristiano Ronaldo has now not scored in 10 consecutive games in major tournaments for Portugal (World Cup/EURO): 33 shots, 11 on target and 0 goals. Ronaldo's goal drought in major tournaments has seen him attempt 33 shots and accumulate an expected goals (xG) total of 4.5 during those 10 matches. In fact, excluding penalties, Ronaldo has not scored in 13 games at major tournaments, taking 42 non-penalty shots that generated an xG of 4.5 in those games. Portugal's World Cup campaign continues on Tuesday against tournament newcomers Uzbekistan, who were beaten 3-1 by Colombia in their opening group match. This will be the first meeting between the two nations, although Portugal are winless in their last two World Cup matches against teams from the Asian confederation. However, Dalot believes Ronaldo can bounce back against Fabio Cannavaro's side as they continue their quest for their first world title. "Everyone already knows how well Cristiano deals with criticism. He has over 20 years of experience with the national team," Dalot added. "I think what he conveys to the team, that confidence, that criticism is just part of the game, especially given the level we are able to play at, being in one of the biggest, if not the biggest, competitions in the world. The trust he gives to us, and we to him, has always been the same and always will be. As long as he represents the national team, I think he will always have that ability and will always be ready to play.",

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