Cristiano Ronaldo is the bitten dog on the side of Juventus after the elimination in the eighth finals of the Champions League against FC Porto. The Portuguese attacker is strongly criticized in the media for his role in the goal against in the extension. A free kick from Sergio Oliveira went through the legs of the jumping Ronaldo, after which Juventus goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny had no answer and had to take the 2-2. Sky Italiaanalyst Fabio Capello calls it ‘an inexcusable mistake’ of the Portuguese.
After a 2-1 defeat in Porto, the Italian superpower managed to get an extension out of the fire. Juventus took the lead and had a man more because of a red card from Porto attacker Mehdi Taremi. Andrea Pirlo’s side suffered a fatal blow in the 115th minute when Oliveira worked a free kick into the goal. Adrien Rabiot and Ronaldo jumped up, with the latter doing so with his back to the ball. “That was an inexcusable mistake,” said Capello afterwards. “In my time, players were chosen for the wall and could not be afraid of the ball. They were afraid of the ball and jumped with their backs to it, that is really unforgivable. ”
Ronaldo has been the target of criticism on social media for his role in the goal against in the extension. “We have finally found something that Ronaldo cannot do: standing in a wall,” writes Gary Lineker on Twitter. Former footballer Jamie Carragher spoke of it as an analyst CBS words to the same effect: “The whole wall doesn’t look good, but Ronaldo doesn’t even look at the ball. Little things make the difference at this stage of the tournament. ”
Porto pinch it surely. We’ve finally found something Ronaldo can’t do: stand still in a wall. Blimey, Juve have scored again. 4-4 and Porto lead on away goals. Bonkers game.
– Gary Lineker ?? (@GaryLineker) March 9, 2021
Jamie Carragher putting it best on CBS right now – “That’s school boy stuff from Ronaldo.” The entire wall doesn’t cover themselves in glory here, but especially Ronaldo who isn’t even looking at the ball. Little things make the difference in these knockout tournaments. pic.twitter.com/6mUiQNN1o3
– EiF (@EiFSoccer) March 9, 2021
Juventus eventually won 3-2, but that turned out not to be enough for a place in the quarterfinals. Capello is also critical of Ronaldo and other experienced players for not wanting to appear in front of the camera after the game. Only Matthijs de Ligt, Federico Chiesa and Juan Cuadrado showed their faces. “Now you only see the young players in these difficult moments. In this team there are some veterans who claim all the credits for a victory, but who are nowhere to be seen when things go wrong, ”said Capello.