Ronaldo Suffers Humiliating Draw with 'Zero Shots on Target'

[Anchor]


Portugal, considered a favorite to win the tournament, has suffered a blow to its pride after a 1-1 draw against the underdog Democratic Republic of the Congo. Superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, playing in his first match of his sixth World Cup, failed to record a single shot on target, showing the toll of time.

Bae Jeonghun reports.

[Reporter]

The day after his rival Lionel Messi of Argentina thrilled football fans worldwide with a hat-trick, 41-year-old Ronaldo captained Portugal and set the record for the oldest outfield player to start a match, marking the beginning of his sixth World Cup.

However, once the match began, he lacked presence.

He struggled to break through the opponent's defense and failed to record a single shot throughout the entire first half.

He managed his first shot in the 23rd minute of the second half and attempted three shots in total, but all of them missed the target.

With Ronaldo remaining silent and failing to register a single shot on target throughout the 90 minutes, Portugal took an early lead with a header from Neves in the 6th minute. However, they conceded an equalizer to Wissa of the Democratic Republic of the Congo during first-half stoppage time, ending the match in a 1-1 draw.

As global media outlets highlighted Ronaldo's poor performance, Portugal head coach Roberto Martinez maintained his faith in the star.

[Martinez/Portugal National Team Head Coach: It makes no sense to take off the greatest goalscorer in the history of world football (Ronaldo) in a game where you need a goal.]

After the match, Ronaldo wrote on his social media, "It was not the start we wanted, but it is by no means over," adding, "We will keep our heads up and focus on the next game."

(Video Editing: Park Ji-in, Graphics: Kim Ye-ji and Jang Chae-woo)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.