On Instagram, Ronaldo’s family recently revealed the reason why the captain of the Portuguese team cried during the match against Slovenia (early morning of July 2).

In the 105th minute of extra time in the round of 16 match between Portugal and Slovenia in the round of 16 of EURO 2024, Ronaldo was given the opportunity to take a penalty. The player wearing the number 7 shirt still took his usual run-up and deep breath before taking the kick. However, facing Jan Oblak, Ronaldo could not win.

After this move, the first extra time ended. Ronaldo walked to the sidelines and cried. Many of Ronaldo’s teammates such as Joao Canelo, Pepe, Bruno Fernandes had to come forward to encourage the captain. Ronaldo then looked up at the stands, clasped his hands in apology and continued playing. Thanks  to the excellence of goalkeeper Diogo Costa in the penalty shootout, Portugal won 3-0, thereby entering the quarterfinals against France.

Ronaldo cried when the match was not over yet

REUTERS

While everyone was thinking that Ronaldo’s missed penalty made him cry, a day later, the real reason was revealed. Ronaldo’s sister – Ronaldo Elma (51 years old) and Katia Aveiro (46 years old) simultaneously revealed on Instagram the reason why their brother could not hold back his tears.

Both of Ronaldo’s sisters posted the same content: “That was the moment Ronaldo played badly, saw his mother crying through the big screen of the stadium. She suffered all her life to help Ronaldo get to where he is today. Perhaps no one will understand that moment. It’s not just about football, fame and money anymore. For Ronaldo, family and mother are everything.”

Marca commented that the explanation of Ronaldo’s two sisters was consistent with the situation on the field at that time. Ronaldo’s mother also cried when she saw her son’s disappointing performance on the field. Ronaldo’s family had a difficult life before he became a football player. When he was a child, the Portuguese superstar had to stand in front of a bakery in the evening to receive free cakes. Ronaldo’s mother, Maria Dolores dos Santos Aveiro, now 69 years old, also broke all barriers and worked hard for a long time to protect him. 

Ronaldo’s mother beamed at the beginning of the match

AFP

Then she burst into tears and Ronaldo saw this image on the big TVs in the stadium.

SCREENSHOTS

Ronaldo is still being attacked for his “crocodile tears”

Ronaldo’s tears when the match was still not over attracted the attention of fans and the media. German football legend Dietmar Hamann criticized Ronaldo for being too selfish and should have asked to leave the field because he no longer had the motivation to play. In addition, he assessed that the 39-year-old player’s physical strength had significantly decreased.

Meanwhile, Dutch football legend Gullit criticized: “Ronaldo tried to take every free kick for Portugal, even though he only scored one out of 60. There are better shooters in Portugal, but Ronaldo wanted to take all the attention as usual. Honestly, I didn’t like what happened in the game. Ronaldo wasted penalties and didn’t score any free kicks and then burst into tears. I saw them as crocodile tears. What Ronaldo is doing is really unacceptable.”

In England, the BBC even unexpectedly parodied Ronaldo’s name by showing the words “Misstiano Penaldo” on TV. Witnessing that moment, former England and Chelsea captain John Terry felt indignant. He also shared on his personal page the message: “BBC, this is a disgrace.”