Ronaldo trick not baaad for starters
At 33, Portuguese superstar oldest to net three at Cup in opening draw with Spain
SOCHI, RUSSIA— Cristiano Ronaldo used the World Cup to show everyone he’s the GOAT.
Ronaldo rubbed his chin after scoring minutes into Portugal’s opener against Spain, implying he is the Greatest Of All Time. Then he scored two more goals, including a perfectly placed 88th-minute free kick that gave his team a 3-3 draw Friday.
Spain, the 2010 World Cup champion, dominated much of the match but was unable to contain Ronaldo.
“When I play against a player like Ronaldo, these things can happen,” said Fernando Hierro, Spain’s newly appointed coach. “It’s very fortunate for whatever team has Cristiano Ronaldo.”
Ronaldo had twice given European champion Portugal the lead with firsthalf goals at Fisht Stadium, but Diego Costa equalized with a goal in each half. Nacho Fernandez then put the Spanish side ahead with a one-timer from outside the area in the Group B match. He became the fourth player to score in four World Cups, joining Pele, Miroslav Klose and Uwe Seeler. He’s also the first Portuguese player to appear in four Cups, and at 33 became the oldest to score a hat trick in tournament history.
He used his first goal to send a message to the world in an apparent reaction to an Adidas promotion with Lionel Messi, featuring the Argentine with a real goat. Ronaldo and Messi have split the last 10 awards for player of the year.
“I’ve said it so many times, Cristiano is the best in the world,” Portugal coach Fernando Santos said.
Ronaldo downplayed his sixth international hat trick.
“To me, the most important (thing) is to highlight what the team has done,” Ronaldo said.
Spain looked to have successfully overcome its dramatic coaching change on the eve of the tournament.
But Ronaldo curled a late shot from about 25 metres over the wall. The ball went into the top corner as Spain goalkeeper David de Gea watched.
The Spanish federation fired coach Julen Lopetegui for accepting a job with Real Madrid without warning. Hierro, a former player acting as Spain’s sporting director, replaced Lo- petegui despite no significant previous coaching experience.
It was an exciting start to one of the group stage’s most anticipated matches, nonetheless, and it didn’t take long before Ronaldo struck first. He made a nice stepover move to get past Fernandez, his Real Madrid teammate, and was fouled at the edge of the area. He then calmly sent a shot to the right corner as De Gea went the oth- er way. As Ronaldo returned to midfield for the restart, he and Fernandez appeared to exchange words.
Portugal threatened on counterattacks as Spain struggled to get near Rui Patricio’s goal, but a great long pass by Sergio Busquets allowed Costa to even the match. The striker collided with Pepe and used several neat moves to clear other defenders before firing a low shot into the corner from inside the area.
Portugal loudly complained that Costa had fouled Pepe, and replays showed the Spaniard’s arm made contact with Pepe’s body. Referee Gianluca Rocchi allowed the play to continue.
Goal-line technology came into play soon after when a Francisco (Isco) Alarcon shot struck the bar and dropped straight down on the goal line. After Isco complained, Rocchi pointed to his watch, which receives goal confirmations.
Ronaldo’s second goal came after a blunder by De Gea, who let the ball bounce off his hands and into the net after a routine shot from outside the area just before halftime. Busquets and Costa combined for Spain’s equalizer in the 55th.
Three minutes later, Fernandez redeemed himself for the penalty on Ronaldo with a streaking shot after a ball cleared by the defence got deflected toward him. The ball struck the post before going into the goal.