Cristiano Ronaldo’s family’s reaction sums up Portugal star’s delusion

England fans gutted after World Cup defeat to France

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Cristiano Ronaldo’s refusal to accept the decline of his playing career has once again been highlighted by the reaction of his family after Portugal were dumped out of the World Cup by Morocco on Saturday. Ronaldo was named on the bench by Portugal boss Fernando Santos and was introduced as a substitute in the second half but failed to inspire his side to victory over Morocco, who will play France in the semi-finals in Qatar next week.

The 37-year-old only managed ten touches of the ball and attempted just five passes over the course of the second half and was left in floods of tears as he trudged down the tunnel after the final whistle. Ronaldo’s girlfriend, Georgina Rodriguez, went on to hit out at Portugal manager Santos via social media by insisting that the result may have been different if the five-time Ballon d’Or winner had been selected to start the match.

“Today your friend and coach made the wrong decision,” wrote Rodriguez. “That friend for whom you have so many words of admiration and respect. The same one who, when putting you on the field, saw how everything changed, but it was too late.”

Ronaldo’s sister, Katia Aveiro, also felt compelled to take aim at his critics by posting: “I will tell you that he never gave up even when they had already buried him. I will show the movie, the real life movie of their uncle. And thank god I am part of it. Part of his life.”

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However, the desperate post-match cries of Ronaldo’s family members only served to highlight the delusion of their genuine belief that he is still the same player that he once was. His decline has been clear for all to see over the last two years but those around him are still adamant that everybody else is to blame for his own shortcomings, while the player himself has also demonstrated a bitter failure to accept that his career may be drawing to a close.

Ronaldo displayed his lack of responsibility last month by taking part in a tell-all interview with Piers Morgan which ultimately tarnished his legacy at Manchester United before he was shown the door by Erik ten Hag just weeks later. His knack of drawing attention to himself as opposed to fighting for the team has seemingly carried over to his wider family, with Ronaldo seemingly hell-bent on going out kicking and screaming rather than bringing his hugely successful career to the graceful end it deserves.

It remains to be seen whether Ronaldo’s substitute appearance against Morocco will be his last at international level, with Portugal having joined United in deciding that they are better off without him in their starting line-up. Gary Neville, who played alongside Ronaldo at Old Trafford for a number of years, recently insisted that his former team-mate needs to start accepting his decline in order to avoid leaving a sour taste in the mouths of many when he eventually decides to hang up his boots.

“His single mindedness has been one of his greatest strengths over the last 10, 15 years,” said Neville. “His determination to become one of the best in the world, to score the most goals, to break all the records, that fight with [Lionel] Messi.

“But there comes a point where you still have to think about the collective and that’s your team-mates in the dressing room. You’re leaving the game early like you did at United twice, stomping off the other day. It’s coming to that point where he’s not accepting the end of his career very well.”

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