OneFootball
·17 June 2026
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·17 June 2026
Portugal also stumbled at the start of the XXL World Cup and could do no better than a 1-1 draw against the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The most talked-about man of the evening: Cristiano Ronaldo.
Unlike his eternal rival Lionel Messi, however, he won’t be enjoying lavish praise at the start of what could be his last World Cup ever. Quite the opposite.
First of all, there’s the stat showing that CR7 was almost invisible in today’s game against Congo. By the final whistle, he had 25 touches and three shots to his name (none of them on target), not to mention no goal of his own. It was his second-worst performance in an opening World Cup match for Portugal.
On top of that, the global superstar extended a rather unflattering streak. He has now gone ten straight matches at the European Championship and World Cup without scoring.
At Euro 2024, he failed to score in Portugal’s five matches, and two years earlier in Qatar, his only goal came from the penalty spot in the opening game against Ghana. After that, he remained completely scoreless through to the quarter-finals. How Messi ended the 2022 tournament is well known.
Is this a development that could reignite the eternal GOAT debate in a whole new way? Let us know your opinion in the comments!
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.
📸 Lars Baron - 2026 Getty Images







































