Cristiano Ronaldo delivered a defiant response on Tuesday, scoring twice in Portugal’s 5-0 win over Uzbekistan and signaling that his career is far from over. After heavy criticism and strong performances from other World Cup stars, the Portugal captain finished the match by staring into the cameras and shouting, "I’m back. I’m here!"
The goals gave Ronaldo another milestone. He overtook Eusébio as Portugal’s all-time leading scorer in World Cup tournaments and also broke Lionel Messi’s very recent record as the oldest player to score a World Cup brace. The article says he was visibly emotional after the final whistle and credited the team’s overall performance as much as his own.
"I’m happy, but for me the most important thing is that we worked hard and showed confidence," Ronaldo said. "The team improved a lot compared with the previous game and played very well. As they say, every cloud has a rainbow. On a personal level, it is always nice to break records, but my goal is always to help the team achieve its goals."
Portugal coach Roberto Martinez said matches like this can help a team grow during a tournament and praised the squad’s commitment, attitude and maturity. Pundits around the world also praised Ronaldo’s hunger, with Roy Keane saying his desire to keep scoring is a model for the team and Wayne Rooney calling it remarkable that, at 41, he is still scoring twice at a World Cup.
