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Sochi: Fernando Santos, the Portugal coach, denied that his team was only talking about Cristiano Ronaldo, but he will leave Russia with even more doubts about the future of the champions. Europe once their talisman attacks
Cristiano Ronaldo reacts after the defeat of Portugal against Uruguay in the round of 16. AFP
Ronaldo's hat-trick in a 3: 3 draw against Spain allowed the competition to gain momentum, but he did not register until he was able to compete. only one goal in Morocco's 1-0 win over Morocco. He failed to defeat the Iranian defense in a 1-1 draw where Portugal experienced nervous playoffs during which the Asian power could have eliminated it in the group stage.
Saturday, the winners of the 2016 Euro failed Ronaldo was largely ineffective against Uruguay's well-organized defense and close maneuvers, and he seemed frustrated with the lack of delivery from the middle ground.
Santos had bristled a question about the team's reliance on Ronaldo before. Saturday's match, brushing him with an ironic joke. "I just got another free coffee because I bet on this issue! I'm having coffee. Thanks for the question," he said at a press conference. He argued that each team depended on its star players, citing the confidence of Uruguay over Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani to support his point.
Ronaldo played a crucial role in France during the triumphant campaign of Portugal two years ago and during the tournament in Russia. He became the top international scorer in Europe and the second in the world with Iranian Ali Daei
. But his solid form did not put an end to Portugal's goal problems, reflecting their run to Euro 2016 where they all had less possession than their opponents in all their knockout matches. For the Iranian match, Portugal solved their possession problem by controlling the ball 68% of the time while performing 548 pbades, against 155% for the opponent, and with an accuracy rate of 89% [19659008]. possession of ball, played more than twice the number of pbades of their opponent, and with a much better pbad accuracy. Their dominance in the midfield, however, proved insufficient. The Ronaldo rifle was not beaten by the Uruguayan defense, and he got almost no goal in the first period of play.
Portugal had no plan B to counter Cavani's masterly attacks on either side of Pepe. goal scored in the 55th minute. Their defense did not seem as strong as in France, and the midfielder lacked creativity. It is therefore no surprise that Santos has pushed the Real Madrid striker to continue playing for the national team. "Cristiano still has a lot to give to football and I hope that he will stay to help young players grow and develop." Santos said Saturday night, adding, "we have a team with a lot of young players, and of course we all want him to be there with us. "
Ronaldo himself was without commitment on his future. "This is not the time to talk about the future with regard to the players and the coach," said the Portugal captain, adding that the team would continue to be one of the best teams in the world. world, with quality players, a young, united group, I am confident and happy because this team will always fight with all its might. "
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