Portugal needed to beat Ireland to secure qualification for the next World Cup, but We ended up losing 0-2 in Dublin. On the night Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off, he became the first captain to join the national team after taking over. … 22 years career.
The striker was sent off in the 61st minute by Swedish referee Glenn Nyberg after being alerted by VAR for a possible attack on Ireland defender Dara O’Shea. The image showed Ronaldo being hit with an elbow during an altercation off the ball. Nyberg canceled the first yellow, looked bright redPortugal were already on the back foot with an inspired double by Troy Parrott before the break.
At 40 years old and playing his 226th game for Portugal, Ronaldo saw red for the national team for the first time. In total, He has been sent off 13 times in his professional career. —All of them belong to clubs, including six from Real Madrid, five from Manchester United, and one from Juventus. As he left the pitch, Cristiano emerged to applause as the Irish national whistle rang and spoke to his rival manager, who had suggested the day before that the Portuguese manager was trying to condition the referee. In the end, the two calmly shook hands.
The sending off was a decisive blow to a game that had already gotten off to a bad start. Portugal tried to take the lead from the start, but Ireland dropped their lines, closed off spaces and punished every mistake. In the 17th minute, a mistake by Diogo Costa allowed Parrott to touch the goal inside the area. A minute later, the warning became a punishment. The forward took advantage of a corner kick to make it 1-0. Already just before half-time, Parrott extended their lead with a cross that missed the Portuguese goalkeeper.
It was also Roberto Martinez’s first loss in qualifying. After the game, the Spanish coach admitted it was a “game to forget”. “Everything that could go wrong went wrong…and it was good for Ireland. “We lacked purpose.”
“We fought till the end and we have to accept that Ireland deserved to win, even if it was 10 men. Now it’s time to look to Sunday. We need the strength of the people to confirm our presence in the World Cup.
Regarding Ronaldo’s sending off, Martínez tried to alleviate the controversy: “There was no violence, but he was unlucky. He suffered a lot of physical contact and I think the angle of the VAR made the play look worse than it actually was. It’s unbelievable that it’s his first red card for Portugal.”
A similar analysis was conducted in the locker room. Ruben Diaz admitted: “The two goals affected the team’s confidence and composure.”Ruben Neves, on the other hand, admitted that Portugal did not do well in the first half, but stressed, “It’s up to us to qualify for the World Cup.”
Just a month ago, after beating Ireland in Lisbon for their third consecutive win. Portugal seemed to have a clear path. For the 2026 World Cup. However, qualification was postponed for a third time due to the draw against Hungary and defeat in Dublin. Everything will be decided on Sunday against Porto, the group’s most accessible rival, Armenia. If you win, you are guaranteed a direct ticket. Depending on the parallel results, there could be a draw or even a loss.
But in Portugal no one wants to depend on third parties or calculators. And Cristiano Ronaldo, who is aiming for his sixth World Cup appearance, will not be included in the 11 selected by coach Roberto Martinez.
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