Cristiano Ronaldo has broken his silence after Portugal’s heartbreaking Euro 2024 exit.
Ronaldo’s hopes of lifting yet another trophy at his sixth and final European Championship were ended on Friday night as Portugal were beaten by France.
The cagey quarter-final clash in Hamburg finished goalless after 120 minutes and World Cup finalists France prevailed in the subsequent penalty shootout.
Ronaldo scored in the shootout – just as he did in the last-16 victory over Slovenia – but leaves Euro 2024 having failed to score in open play.
The 39-year-old, now playing in Saudi Arabia, believes Portugal ‘deserved more’ in Germany as they failed to set up a mouth-watering semi-final clash with neighbours Portugal, who will now face France.
Ronaldo posted on Instagram: ‘We wanted more. We deserved more. For us. For each and every one of you. For Portugal.
‘We are grateful for all that you have given us and all that we have accomplished so far.
‘On and off the field, I’m sure this legacy will be honoured and continue to be built. Together.’
Ronaldo may decide to retire from international football following Euro 2024 but manager Roberto Martinez said it was too soon to discuss his future with the national team.
‘We just finished the game, everything is still too raw,’ he said. ‘We’re suffering a defeat as a team, there’s no individual decisions at this point.’
On Portugal’s performance against France, Martinez added: ‘We showed we are a team that can suffer, but wants to win for the fans.
‘We lost, but with pride, in the Portuguese style of giving everything. Our players will grow a lot from this experience.
‘The personality, the chances, how we created danger in the final third. It was a performance that makes us look to the future with great pride.’
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