Ronaldo feels weight of Portugal
Posted in
No comments
Saturday, June 16, 2012
By
danielmjema.blogspot.com
There
is a brutal expectation in tournaments that the world's best players
will spread their peacock feathers and outshine lesser creatures as they
do for their clubs. Nothing less than a complete affirmation of their
brilliance is acceptable.
This pressure bears down on Cristiano
Ronaldo as Portugal faces the Netherlands in Kharkiv on Sunday in a
group of death dominated by Germany. While Lionel Messi's hat-trick for
Argentina against Brazil was delighting YouTube viewers, his rival as
world's best footballer was preparing to storm Euro 2012. How could
Ronaldo fail to make Poland and Ukraine his private stage after 60 goals
in all competitions for Real Madrid?
The conquest is not
happening. Or not yet. So unforgiving are the standards that apply to
players of Ronaldo's magisterial ability that one bad game has started
an inquest into his contribution to the national side, who are in danger
of going out.
Messi versus Ronaldo is the duel of our age. The La
Liga title race was a struggle between Barcelona and Real Madrid, Pep
Guardiola and Jose Mourinho and the world's two finest attacking
talents, who trampled the record books, Ronaldo came out on top, adding
Spain's domestic title to the honours he won at Manchester United.
Messi's electrifying hat-trick against Brazil - the third, an outrageous
match-winner into the top corner - subverted the old claim that he is a
child of Barcelona's tiki-taka teaching who might never reach Diego
Maradona's heights for Argentina.
Ronaldo, on the other hand,
headed for Euro 2012 as trophy-winner and proven international talisman.
With his 46 La Liga goals, and 14 more from Champions League, Copa del
Rey and Spanish Super Cup, he seemed in perfect shape to help Portugal
improve on the their second-place finish at Euro 2004. In that final,
where they lost to the scufflers of Greece, he was a 19-year-old prodigy
making his name at United.
The grumbling started after he missed
two one-on-one chances against the Denmark goalkeeper in the 3-2 victory
in Lviv on Wednesday. The most blatant miscue came shortly before
Nicklas Bendtner equalized to make it 2-2. These are the game-killing
chances we expect the best to take, even in a season when Messi and
Robben missed Champions League penalties against Chelsea. A year spent
watching Ronaldo dispatch chance after chance for Real Madrid is no
preparation for a show of bluntness in his country's colours.
Paulo
Bento, the Portugal coach, was not receptive to criticism. "He is a
player of enormous ability who wasn't efficient in a couple of
situations he found himself in," he said.
"He's not under pressure
from us, he's here to help us resolve our problems. He has played two
good games. There is not a single player among the 23 in the squad who
feels any sense of frustration. They all have feelings of happiness and
satisfaction and a sense of responsibility for the Holland game."
Needing
only one goal to move ahead of Luis Figo into third place on Portugal's
alltime scoring list (he now has 32), Ronaldo also drew support from
his Real teammate, Pepe: "Ronaldo is the best player in the world but
even the best make mistakes, so we're here to support him. He's one
player in the team, he can't carry Portugal on his back. It was his turn
to make a mistake today but he helped make it possible for us to be
here in the first place."
The role of
world's most expensive footballer is a burden Ronaldo, 27, has made less
onerous with each month in Madrid. But national icon is another,
weightier calling. Authority deserts the greatest players when anxiety
jolts them out of their confident rhythms and chances are snatched at.
Over-eagerness is the enemy even of geniuses.
Danish fans probed
for Ronaldo's weak spot and found it. "Messi, Messi, Messi," they
chanted at him, in honour of an even more prolific star. Messi scored 73
times last season, with 50 in La Liga. The Danish provocation worked.
"You know where he [Messi] was at this time last year? Do you know?"
Ronaldo asked. "He was being eliminated in the Copa America, in his own
country. I think that's worse, no?"
Before this tournament Bento
said: "Some people always want more from him, but as far as I'm
concerned he's always been an exemplary professional. We can't expect
Cristiano to solve all of our problems."
His own "problem" might
just be an excessive wish to be the Portuguese Messiah, not for
egotistical reasons, but out of a need to be respected and admired on
the mainland he travelled to as a boy from Madeira. If he relaxes and
tries to enjoy this championship, Holland could be in a heap of trouble.
Habari Zingine
Mjulishe Mwenzako
0 MAOINI :