Euro 2024: ‘Goalless’ Cristiano Ronaldo looks to bounce back in Portugal vs Slovenia knockout match
The Portuguese is eyeing his second European Championship and third international trophy
Cristiano Ronaldo has not had a very positive European Championship (Euro) 2024 so far as the 39-year-old is yet to score a goal in the ongoing tournament but he will look to change things during Portugal’s Round of 16 match against Slovenia in Frankfurt on Monday.
In three matches played so far — Czech Republic, Turkey and Georgia — the Al-Nassr forward failed to score in either of them but recorded an assist during the three-goal win against Turkey which secured their place in the Round of 16.
Despite not being able to score, Ronaldo has contributed greatly to Portugal’s success in the tournament so far. Similarly, his teammate, Bruno Fernandes believes that the most important thing for the 39-year-old is for his team to win.
"For Cristiano Ronaldo, the most important thing is for the team to succeed," Fernandes told a news conference. "For him [passing to Fernandes against Turkey] was the best decision at the moment but if he had taken a shot, we would have had the same result.
"We want to win every single game so that means reaching the final and winning the final.
"No team wants to go home early, least of all Portugal because we are aware of our quality. We had a friendly when they beat us and this needs to put us on our toes. They had a great defence but we need to find solutions."
Portugal remain the clear favourite to beat Slovenia despite losing 2-0 to them in a friendly in March this year. Head coach Roberto Martinez lauded their next opponents and said that they are organised so it will not be an easy match.
"It's do or die," Martinez said. "It's not easy to play at a Euros but we are prepared. Slovenia are very well organised and competitive and we need to be at our best. This tournament starts now. Portugal is fresh and we're ready."
It is worth mentioning that with 14 goals, Ronaldo is the top scorer of the Euros and is the only player to play in six different editions of the tournament from 2004 to 2024.
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