Ronaldo's World Cup form questioned after DR Congo draw

Portugal's 1-1 draw with DR Congo in the World Cup has ignited debate over the future of football legend Cristiano Ronaldo. At 41 years and 132 days, Ronaldo became the oldest outfield player to start a World Cup match, with the potential to become the second-oldest scorer if he finds the net.

However, his performance against DR Congo offered little evidence that this milestone is imminent. Ronaldo played the entire 90 minutes but was largely ineffective, touching the ball only 25 times. He failed to register a single shot on target, create any chances for his teammates, and completed just 19 of his 21 passes. This display extended his goal drought in World Cup and European Championship matches to 10 games and 801 minutes.

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We didn't get to the final third at the level we needed to give service to the striker or to use his movements.

The British newspaper The Independent's headline, "10 men and a statue," starkly summarized the sentiment surrounding Ronaldo's lack of mobility on the field. While Portugal coach Roberto Martinez defended his captain, stating the team failed to provide adequate service in the final third, former players offered harsher critiques. Thierry Henry pointed out Ronaldo's tendency to get in the way of passes due to his desire to score, and Chris Sutton suggested the coach should have substituted him earlier.

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It's the team that needs to score, not you. Because he wants to score, he goes into the path of the pass.