Cristiano Ronaldo is both loved and hated by football fans around the world. The constant comparisons with Lionel Messi have often enraged the superstar. Now the Portuguese fans have taken revenge for their great hero.
Cristiano Ronaldo has thousands of fans around the world. This was most recently evident on Saturday evening in Portugal’s confident 3-0 victory over Turkey at the UEFA EURO 2024™Six fans tried to get a selfie with their idol during the game and after the final whistle.
EURO 2024 – All groups at a glance
- Group A: Germany, Scotland, Hungary, Switzerland
- Group B: Spain, Croatia, Italy, Albania
- Group C: Slovenia, Denmark, Serbia, England
- Group D: Poland, Netherlands, Austria, France
- Group E: Belgium, Slovakia, Romania, Ukraine
- Group F: Türkiye, Georgia, Portugal, Czech Republic
But CR7 also has thousands of anti-fans who tend to agree with Lionel Messi in the debate about the best footballer of all time. The chants for his long-time rival have infuriated Ronaldo on more than one occasion in the past. For example, at the end of February this year in Saudi Arabia at a league match of his club Al-Nassr.
The day after the malicious chants, the 39-year-old made an obscene gesture, which resulted in him being banned. In Dortmund, during the European Championship group match against Turkey, the Portuguese fans turned the tables and took revenge in the name of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Güler ridiculed for every mishap
However, it was not the Argentinian Messi who was the target of the scorn, but Arda Güler, who is often referred to in the media as the “Turkish Messi”. Substituted in the 70th minute, the Portugal fans took aim at the 19-year-old from Real Madrid after every failed move and repeatedly started chanting “Messi, Messi” – including arm movements of insincere admiration.
These scenes certainly had an effect. Güler had no significant influence on the game, which was already as good as lost for the Turks due to the 0:3 deficit at that point.
In any case, the Portuguese fans celebrated a big party in Borussia Dortmund’s stadium on Saturday evening – for themselves, for the team and of course for their great hero: Cristiano Ronaldo.
More about Cristiano Ronaldo
More about the author Luca Sixtus
All other important news from the world of sport can be found in the News Update.
