Cristiano Ronaldo’s selfishness hurt Portugal: Thierry Henry’s verdict on DR Congo draw
Cristiano Ronaldo’s frustrating start to the World Cup has been thrust into the spotlight after Thierry Henry accused the Portugal captain of putting personal ambitions before the needs of the team. The former Arsenal and France forward delivered his stark assessment after Portugal’s 1-1 draw against DR Congo in Houston.
The result left Portugal with the job in Group K and Henry, speaking on Fox’s post-match coverage, pointed to a specific moment he believes. summed up Ronaldo’s performance and Portugal’s wider attacking problems.
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“One thing is important, guys, please at home, the team needs to score. Not YOU need to score.”
“Because HE wants to score, he goes in the way of the back pass, you see both players and it’s easier for you to defend. And that’s my thing: The team needs to score. Not you.”
Criticism of Henry focused on the second-half attacking sequence involving Joao Cancelo and Bruno Fernandes. The former Barcelona striker claimed that Ronaldo’s movement towards the ball filled the dangerous space and ultimately made life easier for the Congolese defence.
“So of course we will see that Portugal will have the ball, Cancelo will get the ball. Cristiano Ronaldo has been in this situation several times.
“If you do that here, you make the defender decide to break the six-yard box. But because he wants to score, he goes into the path of Bruno Fernandes. If he goes into the six-yard box, then it would be a tap-off for Bruno Fernandes.”
The comments carry special weight given Henry’s position in the game. Henry, a World Cup winner and one of the greatest strikers of his generation, suggested Portugal’s biggest challenge may not be tactical or technical, but finding the right balance between maximizing Ronaldo’s strengths and ensuring the team works collectively.
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Ronaldo’s performance against DR Congo was always going to attract attention given the events of the last 24 hours.
While the Portuguese icon struggled to make his mark in Houston, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland dominated the headlines. Messi scored a hat-trick against Algeria becoming the oldest player to achieve the World Cup treble and tie Miroslav Klose’s record for all tournament goals. Mbappe became France’s top scorer while Haaland marked his World Cup debut with two goals for Norway.
Against this background, Ronaldo endured a difficult evening.
The 41-year-old managed just 25 touches and failed to register a shot on target as Portugal were held to a draw by a disciplined DR Congo side. After also failing to score at Euro 2024 and in Portugal’s pre-World Cup warm-ups against Chile and Nigeria, concerns about his influence at the highest level only grew.
To be fair, Portugal’s star-studded midfield has also struggled to provide the services required. Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, Vitinha and Joao Neves controlled possession for long periods but lacked the imagination needed to consistently break down DR Congo’s defensive mould.
Yet Henry argues that the problem goes beyond creativity. In his view, Portugal cannot afford to get caught up in helping Ronaldo chase individual milestones. According to him, the team must remain the priority.
This debate is unlikely to go away anytime soon. Ronaldo remains one goal away from becoming the first player to score at six different World Cups as Portugal continue to harbor ambitions to win the tournament. But after their opening game, Henry’s verdict added a new layer to the conversation surrounding one of football’s greatest ever players.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
18 Jun 2026 07:22 IST