Blame Carlos Queiroz not Cristiano Ronaldo for Portugal out of the World Cup 2010
Spain collided with their neighbours Portugal in what the world thought would be a pulsating Round of 16 encounter, featuring free flowing football. It was touted to be an adrenalin-packed clash of two similar football cultures. However, what followed on the pitch only disappointed the audiences, as Spain dominated the proceedings and Portugal only sat back and defended.
Spain booked their place in the next round of the World Cup with what eventually turned out to be a comfortable 1-0 victory. The score-line did not truly reflect the dominance of the Spanish artisans, as they controlled the game for major parts of it.
The Portuguese started the game with an attacking line-up that looked promising at the onset. Hugo Almeida led the attack with support from Cristiano Ronaldo and Simao Sabrosa on the wings. However, it soon became apparent that manager Carlos Queiroz had sent his team out with only one thing in mind: to sit back and defend, and repel the wave after wave of Spanish attack.
The Navegadores had 10 men behind the ball every time Villa, Torres and Iniesta came forward to attack, and they were successfully stifling the Spanish Armada up until the 62nd minute, when David Villa combined with Iniesta and Pedro to break the shackles of Portuguese defence with slick one touch football that proved to be Portugal’s undoing. Spain up till then looked frustrated in their attempts to breach the Portuguese defence, as they came up against a brick wall every time they came forward, and were very limited in their goal-scoring attempts.
The main problem for Portugal was not the lack of skill, talent, will or motivation of their team; neither were Spain better than them on the night. It was eventually the defensive mindset of the team that let them down. The defensive mindset of the team minimized the impact of their star player Cristiano Ronaldo.
The striker rarely looked like the player that dazzles the Spanish La Liga day in day out, and given his manager’s tactics, this came as a surprise to no one.
In a World Cup where playmakers like Messi and Ozil are given full freedom to roam around the pitch and look to create an opening, Ronaldo had chains put around his feet; of his 97 touches in the game, 47 were inside in his own half, and that tells you the whole story. Even then, Ronaldo tested the credentials of Iker Casillas with a few long range efforts, but the boyfriend of the world’s sexiest sports journalist was never going to be beaten by those Hollywood shots.
Ronaldo is a mastermind, a lethal forward with viciously stinging shots, but he needs his freedom on the pitch, he needs to play in a system that allows him to take advantage of his natural abilities. He is one the most gifted footballers of this generation; he has the speed, skill and stamina to befuddle any defence in the world. His speed alone with or without the ball is enough to glide past the defence with effortless ease, and combine that with the fearsome shots he is capable of, he is any defender’s worst nightmare. Yet it’s a shame he was not given the opportunity to shine.
Carlos Queiroz needs to take the blame for that, as he sent out a team with an approach of not to lose rather than to win.
Of course, there will be doubters that will argue that Portugal were outmatched and overrun in the midfield, and given the midfield that comprised of Iniesta, Xavi, Alonso and Busquets, it is a legitimate argument, but it does not explain the defensive tactics of the manager, and further, fails to explain why the manager used the same tactics against Ivory Coast, a team far inferior to the talents of this Spanish Armada.
There will be others who will argue that Ronaldo failed to create an impact on the game but the real question is: could he, when he lacked support up front? Every time he ran with the ball with his mazy yet lightening fast runs, he found no one around him. Football is a team game and a team effort to attack effectively and when you are up against a defence that comprises of Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique with Sergio Ramos and Joan Capdevilla, individual skill alone will never get you anywhere.
Truth be told, whenever Portugal play a tougher opposition they rarely play as a team. They are much more comfortable playing the role of a spoiler rather than attempting to capture the game by the scruff of its neck. While this may be an effective strategy for the short term, it certainly negates the impact of players like Ronaldo and Simao, and until Queiroz (or his replacement) realizes this fact, we will never see the best of Ronaldo in a Portugal shirt.
Tags: