FIFA WC: Felt sorry for Cristiano Ronaldo when he was strolling down the tunnel in tears, says Gary Neville

Former England defender Gary Neville has stated that he felt sorry for ex-teammate Cristiano Ronaldo after he was eradicated from the World Cup. Portugal was knocked out of the 2022 FIFA World Cup after succumbing to a 1-0 defeat by the hands of Morocco within the quarter-final stage.

New Delhi,UPDATED: Dec 17, 2022 12:36 IST

Neville says he felt unhappy for Ronaldo (AP)

By India Today Web Desk: Former England defender Gary Neville has stated that he felt sorry for ex-teammate Cristiano Ronaldo after he was eradicated from the World Cup. Portugal was knocked out of the 2022 FIFA World Cup after succumbing to a 1-0 defeat by the hands of Morocco within the quarter-final stage.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Neville, who has been a critic of Ronaldo’s current conduct, stated he felt sorry for him when he noticed photos of Ronaldo strolling down the tunnel in tears.

“I actually felt sorry for Cristiano in the end, when he was walking down that tunnel in tears. That’s never a good image. You know he’s thinking, this is it, I’m never going to play in this tournament again,” stated Neville.

The former Manchester United full-back stated what Ronaldo has achieved is an overachievement in his eyes, given his age of 37.

“I wouldn’t class it as an underachievement from Ronaldo, I’d say it’s an overachievement that he’s doing what he’s doing at the age of 37, it’s just the way it ended with him being out of the team,” Neville added.

The 47-year-old stated he was extra disillusioned with Portugal as a collective than he was with Ronaldo on the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

“In the end, I thought Portugal were really poor in that last half-hour against Morocco. If you look at how to chase a football match, this was nothing to do with Ronaldo, it was more to do with Bernardo Silva and Bruno Fernandes and the way they played in the game, they were so deep and found themselves having to play impossible passes, or just recycle the ball side to side. I was more disappointed with Portugal as a collective than I was with Ronaldo,” stated Neville.

With simply two groups left within the match, Argentina will lock horns with France within the 2022 FIFA World Cup ultimate on December 18.

Edited By:

Rounaq Sehrawat

Published On:

Dec 17, 2022