Ronaldo's World Cup career ends in tears as Portugal exit

Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup career came to an emotional end on Monday as Portugal suffered a 1-0 defeat to Spain in the last 16 in Dallas. The 41-year-old five-time Ballon d'Or winner was in tears after Mikel Merino's injury-time goal sent Spain through, leaving one of football's greatest careers without the sport's biggest prize.

Ronaldo, who has scored a world-record 976 goals for club and country, had already announced this would be his final World Cup. He has scored at a record six World Cups, but the closest he came to winning the tournament was when Portugal reached the semi-finals in his first appearance in 2006. After the match, when asked about his international future, Ronaldo said: "I will meet the family and take decisions with a calm head."

Martinez under fire for Ronaldo's role

Portugal manager Roberto Martinez announced his departure after the final whistle, but not before facing sharp criticism for his handling of Ronaldo. BBC pundit Chris Sutton, speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live from Texas, was scathing: "He's waddling around the field like a grandad, that's why Portugal are out. Cristiano Ronaldo does nothing; he did nothing. What is Roberto Martinez doing? How can you pander to a player so much? Portugal are out because of Roberto Martinez."

Martinez defended his decision to start Ronaldo, saying: "When you need a goal you cannot take Cristiano off, at least in 90 minutes, he is physically capable - his presence, open space, dead-ball situations, we need his experience." He praised Ronaldo as a "football icon" and said: "We need to thank him for what he tried to do at this World Cup. His dream was to win this World Cup, he did this with an amazing example. He is a prime example of football and the human being that is behind that athlete."

Debate over Ronaldo's starting role

The question of whether Ronaldo should start has been a recurring theme at recent major tournaments. While he has scored 146 goals for Portugal—a men's international record—critics have argued he offers little beyond goal-scoring. Portugal's squad includes some of the world's best defenders and midfielders, yet they only reached the last 16. Four squad members helped Paris St-Germain win the past two Champions League titles: left-back Nuno Mendes, midfielders Vitinha and Joao Neves, and striker Goncalo Ramos, who joined AC Milan this summer. Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes was the Premier League's player of the year.

Sutton questioned why Ramos did not play: "How did Goncalo Ramos not get on the pitch? It's an absolute embarrassment from the manager, just pandering to his star player. He's the most decorated player that Portugal have ever had but you've got to be stronger than that."

Ronaldo's tournament statistics

Ronaldo finished the World Cup with three goals—a double against Uzbekistan and a penalty against Croatia. Despite 10 players scoring more goals, only four players had more shots than Ronaldo's 18. He had the same number of shots as seven-goal joint top scorer Erling Haaland. However, Ronaldo created only one chance for a teammate in five games, and 366 players touched the ball more times than he did, despite him playing all but nine minutes of Portugal's five matches.

The defeat also reignites the debate over the greatest of all time, as Ronaldo's long-time rival Lionel Messi has won the World Cup, while Ronaldo's career ends without that honor.