Cristiano Ronaldo has drawn criticism over a gesture he made following Joao Cancelo’s disallowed goal during Portugal’s World Cup opener.
Portugal needed a winner against DR Congo.
When one nearly arrived, Ronaldo’s body language became the story.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s gesture sparks social media backlash
Portugal were held to a 1-1 draw in Houston, with Joao Neves opening the scoring in the sixth minute before Yoane Wissa leveled in first-half stoppage time. Cancelo thought he had restored Portugal’s lead with an acrobatic finish in the second half, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside.
As the ball hit the net, cameras caught Ronaldo raising his arm toward the officials. Fans quickly accused him of appealing against his own teammate’s goal, although the angle and timing leave room for interpretation.
One fan wrote, “Your teammate scores the winning goal, and your first reaction is to appeal for offside. Ronaldo is a different breed.”
Another claimed, “Get this envious guy out of here, he’d have preferred they disallowed his teammate’s goal, look at his face.”
A third fan asked, “Did I just see Ronaldo raise his hand for offside for a goal his teammate scored??”
Two more reactions made the same point, with one posting, “His teammate might score the winning goal, and the first thing Ronaldo does is flag the offside,” while another added, “Ronaldo calls for offside on his own teammate when the score was 1-1 against Cape Verde. I need a good football analyst to explain this to us.”
Cristiano Ronaldo’s criticism needs tactical balance
A fairer interpretation is that Ronaldo may have been reacting to the expected offside call rather than trying to influence officials. It is difficult to judge intent from body language alone.
Even so, the moment looked poor. Ronaldo did not respond with the energy of a player whose team had just found a potential winner, and that fed wider questions about Portugal’s attack.
Ronaldo’s opener was quiet, recording 25 touches and three off-target shots, while Sky Sports noted he missed two big chances in a match where Portugal managed only one shot on target, Neves’ goal.
That connects with the debate over Roberto Martinez starting a 41-year-old striker. TNT Sports reported pre-tournament discussion in Portugal over whether Ronaldo’s reduced mobility affects a squad full of creators, especially with younger forwards like Goncalo Ramos, Rafael Leao, and Goncalo Guedes available.
Ronaldo still has 143 international goals and a strong recent Al Nassr form. He remains a dangerous talisman who can rebound in Portugal’s next game, but every reaction will now be watched as closely as every shot.
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