There were tears from Cristiano Ronaldo after a missed penalty, then there was an on-pitch apology to the Portugal fans even before the conclusion of this game – and if his mobility no longer propels him around the pitch, that certainly does not deny him the spotlight.
At 39, at his sixth European Championship, Ronaldo was at the centre of the drama. Taking every free-kick – even those that were not in sensible range. Grabbing the penalty that Portugal won in extra-time and then crying when he missed it. There was more drama after he scored in the shootout with a grand gesture of apology to the Portuguese support and then, eventually the triumph.
It was desperate for Slovenia, whose nerve deserted them in the penalty shootout to the extent their first three were saved by Diogo Costa and they were beaten within six. They had chased and battled, fouled and hustled their way through 120 minutes. When their backs were truly up against the wall, Jan Oblak made a penalty save for the ages from Ronaldo’s penalty-spot thunderbolt. But in the shootout, Oblak could not stop any of the three that went past him.
There were tears from Cristiano Ronaldo after a missed penalty, then there was an on-pitch apology to the Portugal fans even before the conclusion of this game – and if his mobility no longer propels him around the pitch, that certainly does not deny him the spotlight.
At 39, at his sixth European Championship, Ronaldo was at the centre of the drama. Taking every free-kick – even those that were not in sensible range. Grabbing the penalty that Portugal won in extra-time and then crying when he missed it. There was more drama after he scored in the shootout with a grand gesture of apology to the Portuguese support and then, eventually the triumph.
It was desperate for Slovenia, whose nerve deserted them in the penalty shootout to the extent their first three were saved by Diogo Costa and they were beaten within six. They had chased and battled, fouled and hustled their way through 120 minutes. When their backs were truly up against the wall, Jan Oblak made a penalty save for the ages from Ronaldo’s penalty-spot thunderbolt. But in the shootout, Oblak could not stop any of the three that went past him.
Portugal play France in Friday’s Hamburg quarter-final, which is certainly how it should be given the quality that runs so deep through these two great squads. Yet it will be hard to ignore the great strutting presence of Ronaldo at centre-forward, winning cap No 211 for Portugal, always in the team and seemingly going on forever. He played on through 120 minutes and more when it was obvious he was a prime candidate to be substituted.
Instead Roberto Martínez substituted just about everyone else – the playmaker Vitinha, the winger Rafael Leao among others. It is a very odd state of affairs. Martínez will know only too well that it should be Ronaldo who is used sparingly but one can only assume that is not the deal. It may be that the Portugal manager’s job comes with Ronaldo in the starting XI as a non-negotiable and obliges the incumbent to work around that. Ronaldo’s pre-eminence in all dead ball situations, taking all penalties, and a general guidance that he should not be substituted.
Later Ronaldo would detail his thoughts with suitable grandeur. “Sadness at the start is joy at the end,” he said. “That’s what football is. Moments, inexplicable moments.” This is certainly not a man who feels that maybe it is time to step aside and let younger team-mates take up the challenge. Diogo Jota had to wait a long time for his chance, and the likes of Pedro Neto and Goncalo Ramos never even made it on to the pitch.
“A direct shot [penalty] to give the team the lead – I didn’t manage it,” Ronaldo said. “Oblak made a good save [and] I have to see the penalty. I don’t know if I shot well or badly, but I haven’t missed once all year, and when I needed it most, Oblak saved it.”
It was not just the penalties that Ronaldo missed. There were also three free-kicks of varying promise that were smashed over the bar or into the wall. He had taken more than 60 free-kicks in the European Championship and World Cup and scored just once. This has undoubtedly been one of the world’s great goalscorers but the licence he is given remains a kind of cult that Portuguese football seems unwilling to leave.
His team-mate Costa was outstanding in the shootout. He is a Switzerland-born 24-year-old who came through the academy at Porto. “Everybody makes mistakes,” Costa said of Ronaldo’s penalty that was saved in extra-time. “We all know that Cris [Ronaldo] is the hardest worker. I understand how frustrated he is – he devotes all his time to this. I can tell you it is an honour to play on the same team.”
That summarised the general attitude towards Ronaldo amongst his team-mates. His fellow veteran, Pepe, who at 41 years old is even older, came off before the end as Martínez considered penalties. Pepe had been effective although he almost blew it by letting in Benjamin Sesko in extra-time. Pepe and Portugal were bailed out by goalkeeper Costa for the first time, but not the last time.
Slovenia were close to being the great underdog story, 51 places below the mighty Portugal in the Fifa world rankings. Their manager Matjaz Kek was dismissed from the touchline by the Italian referee Daniele Orsato for his protests in the aftermath of the penalty for Portugal given for a foul on Jota, by Vanja Drkusic. Slovenia survived that but they crumpled in the shootout.
Josip Ilicic, Jure Balkovec and then Benjamin Verbic all failed to beat Costa from the spot. Ronaldo, after a run-up that started and stopped and started, beat Oblak with the first for Portugal in the shootout. Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva scored their penalties and the tie was over at last.
Slovenia had come close. There were complaints later again about the state of the Frankfurt pitch. Portugal had plenty of the ball but they did not have the number of opportunities they might have expected. This was the same Slovenia side that had held England to a 0-0 draw in the final group game and Gareth Southgate will have watched Portugal’s struggles with a degree of relief. These are hard sides to beat, even with the players at Portugal’s disposal.
