Evolving Cristiano Ronaldo Has Chance to Exorcise the Ghosts of 12 Years Ago

Twelve years ago, a 19-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo wept on the pitch after Portugal lost in the final of Euro 2004. On Sunday, he will have the chance to crown his career with Portugal’s first international trophy, perhaps by taking on the Greece role and beating the tournament hosts with defensive resolve and organisation.

Ronaldo was named man of the match for his part in the semi-final win over Wales on Wednesday, but this was another game in which his contribution was minimalistic.

Of course, he was vital to Portugal winning, scoring the opener with a powerful header and then seeing his mis-hit shot teeing up Nani for their second goal. But the reason Portugal have reached the final is less him—potent as he is in the final third—than the solidity of the midfield and defence after manager Fernando Santos’ rejig following the group stage.

This is Ronaldo 2.0, a player evolving his game as age begins to sap at his 31-year-old legs. He is not the twinkling winger of old. He is not the surging, all-round attacking machine of his absolute peak. He has become a player who haunts the final third, a great goalscorer, a dangerous and effective slab of muscle.

There were times in this tournament when he resembled almost an old-fashioned English centre-forward, all shoulders and neck and explosive pace, a Lusophone Jackie Milburn for our times.

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

Two of his three goals in the tournament have come from towering headers. Take a silhouette of his hang and his body-shape as he powered in the goal against Wales and it could have been Tommy Lawton. Yet it always feels as though there’s a “but” lingering.

His goals have all come from superb finishes. Ricardo Quaresma got the winner against Croatia off a rebound from one of his shots, and it was his mis-hit shot that Nani turned in for the second against Wales. But around the moments of profound effectiveness, there has been a lot of ineffectiveness.

It’s not that Ronaldo has been subdued—he had 36 shots in the first five games, 15 more than anybody else—but he has looked slightly off-kilter, as though the injury that so clearly afflicted him in the Champions League final meant he needed a minor change of calibration.

In fact, his performance against Austria reached comedic heights because he was so involved and yet still couldn’t score, hitting the post with his penalty and then having a goal ruled out for offside.

One of the problems with trying to assess Ronaldo is that he’s such a divisive figure. Any word of praise or criticism always draws a tidal wave of opposition. To a large degree, he draws the criticism on himself, given what a preposterous figure he often cuts. Having a journalist interrupt a team walk may be annoying, but reacting by throwing his microphone into a lake just looks petulant.

However frustrated he must have been after Portugal were held to a draw by Iceland, to attack the opposition tactics and rubbish their celebrations after they secured a first-ever point in a major tournament finals, saying they were the actions of a “small” team, simply made him look ignorant.

After all, Iceland are not merely small, they are one-ninth the size of the previous smallest nation ever to appear at the European Championship.

But then, why shouldn’t he be ignorant about Iceland? Ronaldo’s success as a football player is the story of a remarkable obsession, a constant striving to make himself as good as he can possibly be through discipline and hard work.

It’s hardly surprising if such monomania leads to solipsism. Ronaldo seems to see the world as a series of obstacles that he will cross for the greater glory of himself—something that perhaps isn’t that unusual among sportspeople.

If his motivation for Portugal isn't rooted in great patriotism, but because their success will reflect well on him, does it really matter?

He’s always been like that. After weeping on the pitch following Portugal’s defeat to Greece in the final of Euro 2004, he explained in Luca Caioli’s book, Ronaldo: The Obsession for Perfection: “We had a fantastic team and we have played a great tournament and we don’t deserve to lose like this." He was desperate to be “the champion of Europe at nineteen years of age." That desire remains undiminished.

LUCA BRUNO/Associated Press

Much has been said about the contrast between Ronaldo’s on-pitch demeanour and that of Gareth Bale. While Ronaldo pouts and moans—given how often he has played with Nani, he must have spent at least an hour-and-a-half of his life waving his hands in irritation at his former Manchester United team-mate—Bale is overtly encouraging. But the picture is perhaps more nuanced than that makes it seem.

Ronaldo, as that shot count suggests, is a selfish player. But it’s fair to say he is selfish for unselfish reasons. He demands the ball, takes shots, berates his team-mates, through a belief—not necessarily misplaced—that doing so is the best way to win the game.

Against Wales, he had nine shots—seven more than any other Portuguese player. He had the third-worst pass completion. Six Portuguese players had more touches than him. He has become the world’s most high-profile lurker. But the important thing is that it works. This is now his job.

Santos has set Portugal up as a team that is hard to break down. His four midfielders work ferociously hard, all prepared to get involved in the physical side of the game. Their job is to prevent the opposition from scoring, something at which they’ve become extremely adept.

In their last 330 minutes of football, Portugal have conceded a single goal. All Ronaldo has to do is make one thing happen, and if the midfielders do their job, Portugal should win.

It’s not pretty, it’s not glamorous, it’s not exciting, but dourly effective plus Ronaldo might be the formula that brings Portugal their first international trophy.

Sunday is Ronaldo’s chance to make good on the promise he made through his tears 12 years ago. “I have to move on," he said then. "I have to look forward. There will be many other opportunities to win in Europe throughout my career and make up for this huge disappointment."

All quotes and information gained firsthand unless otherwise stated.