Germany legend Lothar Matthaus is inclined to believe that Cristiano Ronaldo has tainted his legacy at the World Cup which resulted in him being a ‘big failure’ in Qatar – in sharp contrast to his long-time nemesis Lionel Messi.
While the Argentine triumphantly lifted the trophy to the acclaim, admiration and approval of the football world and picked up the Golden Ball gong for the tournament’s best player, Ronaldo cut a forlorn, dismal figure as he and Portugal exited at the quarter-final stage after a difficult few weeks filled with tension and drama of the unpleasant variety.
On the eve of the tournament just prior to his departure for Qatar, the 37-year-old Manchester United wantaway star gave an explosive interview with Piers Morgan where he huffed and puffed and coldly lashed out with vitriol at Manchester United and claimed he would ‘never respect’ manager Erik ten Hag, while also casting aspersions at the club’s owners and various ex United teammates like Wayne Rooney and Gary Neville.
Not surprisingly that saw the premature termination of his contract – which many are inclined to believe that he was actually planning for with this interview with Piers –with the Red Devils. Whilst the general feeling was that the fracas didn’t really overshadow Portugal’s World Cup campaign, there was further unbecoming commotion surrounding the Portugal captain during the tournament itself.
Manager Fernando Santos – who has since been axed – took umbrage with Ronaldo over the way he reacted to being subbed off against South Korea and he was dropped for the last-16 win over Switzerland, with Goncalo Ramos bagging a hat-trick in his place.
Matthaus – the record appearance holder at World Cups until being usurped by an indomitable Messi – obviously has not enjoyed Ronaldo’s histrionics and petulance and feels he has tarnished his reputation, particularly when compared to his Argentine rival’s stirling performance and attitude.
“With his ego trips, Ronaldo has damaged the team and himself,’ Matthaus told Bild.
“There is no doubt that he was a great player and an absolutely lethal finisher. But now he has damaged his legacy.
“I find it hard to think that he can find a place in a team. I kind of feel sorry for Ronaldo.
“Ronaldo is of course a big failure of the World Cup, the opposite of Messi. [Messi is] the absolute winner.
“He deserves it because he has given me and all football fans great joy with his qualities and the way he plays over 17-18 years. For me, Messi is the player of the millennium.”
Ronaldo is currently languishing in the shadows without a club after his Manchester United debacle but has been heavily linked with a move to Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has been offered a contract worth £432million over two-and-a-half years – which would make him the highest paid athlete in history – but it is highly unlikely he will accept the offer as he is still harboring hopes of keeping alive his hopes of playing for a top European club that can help him fan his Champions League dreams.
Realistically though, this doesn’t seem to be happening anytime soon, yet.