Cristiano Ronaldo attempted to shift responsibility for his red card onto Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson following Portugal’s World Cup loss in Dublin.
Troy Parrott netted twice for the Boys in Green, securing a vital win at the Aviva Stadium and keeping their World Cup qualification hopes alive ahead of their final match against Hungary this weekend. ..Continue Reading
Although Parrott struck in the first half, Portugal’s chances of a comeback were hindered when Ronaldo was sent off in the 62nd minute.
The Al-Nassr forward lashed out with an elbow at Dara O’Shea after a clash between the two. Ronaldo was initially shown a yellow card and was seen mocking O’Shea with a crying gesture before VAR prompted referee Glenn Nyberg to reassess the incident.
The booking was upgraded to a red card, meaning Ronaldo will miss Portugal’s final qualifier against Armenia on Sunday, with their World Cup spot still uncertain.
‘He complimented me with putting pressure on the referee but listen, it had nothing to do with me, it was his action on the pitch that cost him a red card,’ Hallgrimsson said post-match.
‘It had nothing to do with me unless I got into his head.’
He added: “He said that to me walking way. He told me it was a clever thing to do. He blamed the referee or whomever for this, but it was his silly decision to attack our player.”
Portugal coach Roberto Martinez came to Ronaldo’s defense, claiming his captain merely tried to ‘push’ O’Shea away.
‘It’s difficult for a player like Cristiano to be in the penalty area,’ Martinez said.
‘He had constant contact with the defenders, who were grabbing him. There was no violence — he tried to push them away.
‘He was unlucky. I think the angle of the images makes it worse than it actually happened. It’s his first red card for the national team, it’s incredible.’
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