Is age catching up? Cristiano Ronaldo blank as Portugal held DR Congo 1-1
There are days at the World Cup when the stars align. Then there are days when the stars practically alternate and overshadow each other.
Wednesday was firmly in the latter category.
Kylian Mbappe scored twice to become France’s all-time top scorer. Erling Haaland made his long-awaited World Cup debut in preparation for Norway. Lionel Messi then took center stage, scoring a hat-trick on his 200th appearance for Argentina to tie Miroslav Klos as the tournament’s all-time top scorer.
It was the kind of day that was tailor-made for football’s biggest names.
And then there was Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Portugal captain arrived at his country’s World Cup opener against DR Congo with a record of his own. Already the first player to appear in six different World Cups, Ronaldo needed just one goal to become the first ever footballer to score in six editions of the tournament.
Instead, he kept Houston waiting.
Portugal were held to a 1-1 draw by DR Congo in the opening half of Group K, with Yoane Wissa canceling out Joo Neves’ early header before half-time. It was another frustrating night in front of goal for Ronaldo, inevitably rekindling questions about whether time is finally starting to catch up with one of football’s greatest ever players.
The 41-year-old is now without a goal in back-to-back major tournaments, having also failed to find the net during Euro 2024. His last campaign at the World Cup in Qatar ended in similar disappointment, with Ronaldo scoring just once before losing his place in the starting XI during the knockout stages.
Against DR Congo, however, the story was not just about Ronaldo.
PORTUGUESE MIDFIELD LIVE UP TO THE HYPE
Cristiano Ronaldo will inevitably bear much of the criticism. That’s the burden that comes with being Cristiano Ronaldo.
However, Portugal’s shortcomings ran much deeper than their experienced striker.
This is a team blessed with what may be the most technically gifted midfielder at the World Cup. Joo Neves, Vitinha, Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva offer a combination of control, creativity and intelligence that few nations can match. Add Pedro Neto and Nuno Mendes to the flanks and Portugal have more than enough quality to unlock a stubborn defence.
The problem against DR Congo was that they never did.
Portugal controlled possession for long spells but rarely looked capable of turning that control into clear-cut chances. The flow was clean but predictable. The movement was orderly but lacked cut. Bruno Fernandes struggled to produce the defensive passing that has defined much of his career, while Bernardo Silva drifted in and out of the game without ever really establishing himself.
Vitinha and Neves dictated the tempo, but Portugal were often content to move the ball around DR Congo rather than through them.
There was surprisingly little invention for the tech-packed side.
JUST A MOMENT OF INSPIRATION
That’s why Portugal’s opening goal stood out so much.
Just six minutes into the match, Pedro Neto sent in a delicate cross from the left and Joo Neves headed into the far corner. It was quick, decisive and imaginative – everything the Portuguese attack would strive for for the rest of the evening.
In hindsight, this proved to be the only real glimmer of inspiration Portugal produced.
After taking the lead, Roberto Martinez’s side became increasingly predictable. Crosses into the box were surprisingly rare despite Ronaldo being the focal point of the attack. Portugal patiently recycled possession but rarely caught the Congolese defense out of shape.
As the game wore on, Ronaldo often found himself isolated between the centre-backs, running unnoticed and waiting for deliveries that never came.
That doesn’t completely excuse his performance. Great strikers are often judged by their ability to create moments even when service is limited, and Ronaldo failed to do that. But it would equally be unfair to ignore how little support he has received from a midfield expected to be among the best at the tournament.
The bigger worry for Portugal may be what happened after Wiss’s equaliser.
Instead of reacting with urgency, they lost control of the competition. DR Congo grew in confidence, repeatedly threatened to counterattack and even came close to a famous victory. At the final whistle it was the underdogs who looked the more dangerous.
For a nation with real ambitions to lift the World Cup, this should be a warning sign.
Portugal has talent. They have experience. They certainly have a midfield.
What they lacked against DR Congo was imagination.
And on a day when Mbappe, Haaland and Messi added new chapters to their legacy, Ronaldo was left looking at his own piece of history unwritten.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
Jun 18, 2026 0:46 AM IST