During Thursday’s World Cup qualifying match in Dublin, Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo stated that he wanted Ireland supporters to jeer him. Portugal will advance to the 2026 World Cup finals if they win, and Ronaldo thinks that if the audience concentrates on him, his teammates won’t be as pressured.
Next summer, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner hopes to compete in his sixth World Cup. With two games left, Portugal leads qualifying Group F by five points.
I’m accustomed to being jeered by the stadium. At a press conference on Wednesday, Ronaldo said, “I really hope they do—maybe it will relieve the pressure on other players.”
Ronaldo expects the game to be “difficult,” with Ireland probably sitting back and giving him and his colleagues little room. The possibility of scoring his 1000th career goal in the World Cup final was another question posed to the former Real Madrid and Manchester United forward.
Ronaldo, 40, chuckled, “You’ve been watching too many movies; that would be too perfect.”
Returning to reality, I’m pleased with all of this info. A national team never relies on a single player, but I enjoy using goals to change things. I think it’s always beneficial to score goals. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to compete in the upcoming World Cup. However, let’s approach it gradually.”
Ronaldo has scored 953 goals in his career and is currently a member of the Saudi Arabian team Al Nassr. With 143 goals, the striker leads all men’s international goal scorers. He anticipates retiring from sport in a few years and thinks the 2026 World Cup will be his final one.
But instead of talking about his future in the game on Wednesday, Ronaldo emphasized concentrating on the team’s goal of qualifying.
“Being repetitive and losing focus is pointless,” he continued. “Maybe in the future, I’ll do more interviews and discuss my plans in greater detail. However, Portugal currently has another chance to get to the finals.
