Ronaldo has now gone 10 consecutive games at major tournaments without finding the net since a penalty against Ghana at the 2022 World Cup.
Against DR Congo he had three shots – more than any other player – but failed to hit the target.
“Whenever people talk about Cristiano Ronaldo, it almost feels like Portugal are playing in Cristiano Ronaldo’s country,” said Luis Aguilar, a pundit for SIC Noticias.
“It’s like there is one man who is far bigger than the collective good, and that it is more important for things to work for Cristiano Ronaldo than for the team, when that doesn’t have to be the case.
“Because the reality today is that, unlike the comparison that is often made with Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo is not the best player in the Portugal team. Messi is still the best player in the Argentina team.”
Despite his struggles in Portugal’s opener, the number seven remained on the pitch for the full 90 minutes.
Under coach Roberto Martinez, he has been subbed off 13 times across the 30 matches he started, but only once before the 60th minute – in the 5-0 win against Armenia in September 2025. As much as Martinez refuses to define Ronaldo as untouchable, the numbers paint a different picture.
“He’s not the solution and that alone makes him part of the problem,” said A Bola executive director Luis Mateus.
“His goals used to make up for his lack of defensive contribution. Now he is no longer scoring and he is affecting the entire attack. Mentally, because his team-mates still want to serve him even when there are better options, but also because he has become something of a square peg in the whole attacking process.
“He is on the pitch because of gratitude, not because of how he is playing.”
A recent poll from the Zerozero website found that 63% of the Portugal fans who voted do not want him to start against Uzbekistan.