Cristiano Ronaldo just would not be denied. He had a penalty saved by Gavin Bazunu and then saw John Egan put the Republic of Ireland on course for what would have been a famous and deserved victory. But Manchester United’s newest signing struck twice in the dying minutes to give his country victory and prolong his own legend, a pair of majestic headers making him the most prolific scorer in the history of men’s international football.
Ronaldo took his goal tally from 180 matches for his country to 111, two more than Ali Daei scored for Iran – and 102 more than the combined haul of Ireland’s starting XI on the Algarve. Ronaldo’s extraordinary feat made for an agonising end for the Ireland manager, Stephen Kenny, whose team delivered an intelligent and confident performance, proving they have made serious progress since losing at home to Luxembourg in March. Ireland have zero points from three qualifiers, and Kenny has one win from 14 matches in charge, but there was plenty of reason here to believe they are going in the right direction. There is no shame in being thwarted by the greatest scorer of all time.
Written by Paul Doyle
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/football/2021/sep/01/portugal-republic-ireland-world-cup-2022-qualifier-match-report under the title “Record-breaker Cristiano Ronaldo’s late goals for Portugal break Ireland’s hearts”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
