Cristiano Ronaldo’s World Cup international career ended in tears on Monday night, as Spain’s Mikel Merino scored in the first minute of second-half stoppage time to hold Portugal to a 16-16 draw. Ronaldo, 41, wept on the pitch after the final whistle and thanked more than 70 fans in attendance, comforted by more than 70 players. An image of 18-year-old Lamine Yamal from Spain went viral in both countries.
In Bola’s own match chronicle, “How many tears do you have, Chris, for Portugal?” Titled as such, framed to depart from the opening line of Fernando Pessoa’s “Mar Portuguese”. He credited Portugal’s defense for the equalizer.
A Bola also noted that Martinez had told broadcaster RTP before the tournament that he strongly believed in the numerology of the number 6; Portugal were eliminated on the 6th thanks to a goal from Spain’s Merino in the sixth.
An independent A Bola opinion column, headlined “Cristiano Ronaldo: We don’t want to ‘kill’ you, but enough is enough”, blamed head coach Roberto Martinez by name, not Ronaldo. It called the decision to leave Goncalo Ramos, the match-winner against Croatia, on the bench “the cherry on top of the horror show” and argued that Martinez was “a diplomat chosen by the federation to laugh while the house is burning.” It included Portugal’s 2006 World Cup squad, Deco, Luis Figo, Maniche, Costinha, Nuno Gomes, as a generation called “Honored Portugal” in its own last World Cup.
Also read | Ronaldo’s last World Cup ended in tears as Merino sent Spain off
Radio station Radio Renasenka ran a sharper, more forensic version of the same argument, building its case on numbers rather than emotion: “Cristiano Ronaldo touched the ball 19 times, carrying it six times for a total of 31.5 metres. He shot three times without danger.” He directly asked: “If he doesn’t press or defend like non-contributors, why can’t the captain of the national team be replaced?”, naming former Portuguese strikers who have been dropped for similar output. But he also broke from A Bola’s hard line, adding a note of real subtlety: “To demand Cristiano Ronaldo is to respect a legend. Superstition only punishes a legend.”
Not every dressing room tone matches the tone of the press. Goalkeeper Nelson Semedo said the Portuguese public should thank Martinez. Diogo Costa, more somber, said he would trade performance for victory, missing that luck.
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Diario de Noticias took the most tactical, least emotional line of any Portuguese outlet, naming Diogo Costa as Portugal’s player of the tournament and criticizing the decision to replace Vitinha, a midfielder he says “doesn’t deserve to be removed”, ahead of Bernardo Silva.
Bola ran his own video segment that same night under the headline “Ronaldo didn’t speak to teammates after Spain defeat”. Journalist Gary Al-Smith, posting separately, was quoted as directly explaining Ronaldo’s silence: “I didn’t say anything. The coach is the one who spoke. It wasn’t me.”
Martinez himself addressed Ramos’ question directly in comments to ESPN: “When you’re a team and you need a goal, you can’t do away with Cristiano Ronaldo… It might make sense to use Goncalo Ramos in extra time.” Extra time never came, as Merino’s goal came in the first minute of stoppage time. Martinez also had kind words for his captain: “He is an exemplary captain… an icon in football. There are not many Cristiano Ronaldos.”
In the post-match press conference, Martínez himself confirmed his departure: “It was definitely my last match for Portugal. I want to thank the Portuguese people. I will take the memory with me for the rest of my life.” Portuguese outlets reported that Jorge Jesus, 71, formerly at Al Nasser, is the federation’s choice to be in charge of the Euro 2028 and 2030 World Cup cycles, the latter co-hosted by Portugal, Spain and Morocco.
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A small slice of the on-field texture from the Spanish side: Spain’s man of the match Rodri publicly apologized to his former Manchester City teammate Bernardo Silva after the match, in a heated debate, Bernardo’s obvious equalizing header missed and Rodri’s celebration of the miss led to Spain’s two-legged final victory.