Cristiano Ronaldo was once again left at the fringes in Portugal’s attacks during Spain in the Round of 16 match at the FIFA World Cup in Dallas on Monday.
Ronaldo had just 19 touches in the match, only three of which were in the opposition box.
However, despite his limited involvement, Ronaldo took three shots, two of which were on target, needing Simon’s intervention. He attempted 12 passes, completing 10 of those.
His first chance came in the 12th minute, when he took a shot after a stepover from the right side of the penalty area. The second opportunity was much more threatening as he got a cushioned-header from Joao Felix and tried a bicycle shot, only for Simon to dive to his left and collect the ball.
He remained the target man for Portugal through the game as the other playmakers around him tried to find the breakthrough pass to Ronaldo in the box.
Ronaldo ended this World Cup with three goals, taking his overall tally to 11 goals. During the Round of 32 match against Croatia, Ronaldo scored his first goal at a World Cup knockout match.
Published on Jul 07, 2026
