Mumbai: Visibly annoyed, Cristiano Ronaldo looked up. It was taking Moroccan referee Jalal Jayed quite a while to set up the wall after Portugal were awarded a free kick from a position of promise, against Uzbekistan.
Finally, the clearance came from the official, and Ronaldo went through his usual process. There was the deep breath and release, eyes focused on the ball, then towards goal, all as he stood in his trademark wide-legged free-kick stance. This was his moment. The Uzbeks knew it, so did the 68,777 that were present in the Houston Stadium.
Then came the movement. But not from Ronaldo.
To his right, Nuno Mendes exploded into a short run-up and struck a shot with his left foot that took Uzbekistan by surprise and the ball curled into the bottom corner of the net. The ruse worked. And it showed yet another way in which the 41-year-old Ronaldo can be used to benefit his team.
In the game against Uzbekistan, Ronaldo became the only man to score in six editions of the marquee tournament. With age though, his role has changed for the Portuguese team.
He began his career as a winger fleet of foot but has moved to become the focal point of the attack. Ronaldo is still a threat at the top of the attack with an unmistakable eye for goal. But he does not have the pace that would give him yardage ahead of defenders.
That was evident when Portugal were held 1-1 in their tournament opener against DR Congo and again against a high-quality Colombian team, with whom they played out an entertaining goalless draw. Tightly marked in both matches, Ronaldo did not get much time on the ball nor space to move into. He had two touches in the Colombia box.
It hurt Portugal’s chances. But that is where coach Roberto Martinez needs to figure out the tactics. He knows what the team’s No.7 can and cannot offer. Unless, Martinez is playing mind games ahead of Thursday’s round-of-16 tie against Croatia, Ronaldo is likely to start his fourth straight match of this World Cup. “There is not an issue physically or mentally for Cristiano in today’s game to play the 90 minutes,” said Martinez. If Luka Modric starts, it will be the first time a World Cup match with a player over 40 in each side.
So, how can Ronaldo contribute? The game against Uzbekistan provided some clues. In the two goals that Ronaldo scored, he showed what he can do if his teammates can get him the ball in space.
Ronaldo can also be useful in making space for teammates with decoy runs. He has been seen in off-side positions, standing inside the goal when Portugal have won a corner-kick, both in the hope of drawing players towards him and creating space for his teammates.
Slow or not, no defence can leave Ronaldo unmarked. “He’s a man who can decide the game and he attracts all the attention from defenders,” Nani, Ronaldo’s former teammate at Portugal, told “The Athletic.”
If Ronaldo is more mobile, can Bruno Fernandes, Joao Felix, Pedro Neto and Rafael Leao and full backs who love bombing forward jump in the space and stretch Portugal’s opponents?
“I’m speaking as a striker, the problem is that Cristiano is in the centre and he stays there to take advantage of the goal because he no longer goes out to look for the ball,” his former Manchester United teammate Diego Forlan, who won the Golden Ball at the 2010 World Cup, said to ESPN’s La Casa del Kun programme.
“(He doesn’t) understand that you end up hurting your team because both centre-backs stay there (if) you don’t move.
“If (Ronaldo) moved a little to the wings, the others could get in and could be involved. It’s about making him understand. Telling him: ‘move, get out of there so you can do something.’”
Conversely, can Portugal’s talented midfield that loves to keep the ball, find more passes for Ronaldo?
For his country, Ronaldo has scored 145 times. Off late, at major tournaments, the goals have run dry – he has scored in just one match (against Uzbekistan) in the last 12 matches. Portugal have hopes of making it big this time around. They will have to find a way to do that with, not without, Ronaldo.
