Cristiano Ronaldo Praised by Zinedine Zidane After Real Madrid Beat Legia Warsaw

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has hailed the contribution of Cristiano Ronaldo during his team’s clash with Legia Warsaw in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday. 

Ronaldo didn’t find the back of the net against the Polish side during the 5-1 win, with Gareth Bale, Marco Asensio, Lucas Vazquez, Alvaro Morata and an own goal from Tomasz Jodlowiec doing the damage on the night. Nevertheless, Zidane was full of praise for his attacking talisman.

“He played phenomenally, giving the ball to others, he had chances but didn't score, but in the game in four days' time there's no doubt he'll score,” said the Frenchman afterwards, per AS.

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Ronaldo certainly didn’t have a poor game, registering a couple of assists, but his performance probably didn’t warrant a tag of “phenomenal.”

On 98 goals in the UEFA Champions League, it was clear Ronaldo was keen to find the back of the net to reach a three-figure landmark, and he fired off shots from distance throughout the game. The Portugal captain also missed some clear openings, as Madrid cut through Legia at will at the Santiago Bernabeu.

As we can see here courtesy of ESPN FC’s Dermot Corrigan, Ronaldo totted up quite a haul of efforts on goal on the night, while Madrid seem to be finding other scoring options in the side:

That won’t be a concern for Zidane at all. In the past Madrid have been accused of being too reliant on the former Manchester United man, who has dragged Los Blancos to results with his predatory instincts. To see others among the goals in the white strip represents a refreshing change.

History dictates that Ronaldo will start netting again soon. The Portuguese is arguably the finest goalscorer of his generation and is still finding himself in dangerous positions on the pitch; it’s when he stops finding spaces in the final third that Madridistas should start worrying.

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Indeed, perhaps Ronaldo should be receiving more praise for increasing his creative output lately. In the past he’s been accused of being selfish by some supporters, although four assists in his last three matches point to a multifaceted forward. These numbers from Squawka Football suggest this is an underrated attribute of Ronaldo’s game:

Having variety in attack is so important for any side and although Madrid have long had world-class players alongside their No. 7, seeing the likes of Asensio, Vazquez and Morata happy to take responsibility in the final third is a positive sign.

That’s a progression that will ultimately benefit Ronaldo. If opponents are concerned about the talents of his supporting cast, that’ll free up space for the Portuguese to score goals and, should this selfless trend continue, create them too.

Madrid face Athletic Club in La Liga on Sunday and with 16 goals against the Basque side since joining Real, you’d suspect Zidane’s prediction may well come to fruition.