FREEPRESS – The Portugal captain spurned a golden opportunity to grab victory for his country against Austria when he fired his spot-kick against the upright 11 minutes from time. The subsequent 0-0 draw leaves Portugal third in Group F with one game to play.
It was the fifth time Ronaldo has missed a penalty this season and he has now failed with four of his last five efforts. Never before in a season has he missed more than three.
Ronaldo had become the most-capped player in Portugal’s history on Saturday night by making his 128th international appearance against Austria. But he’ll also go into the record books as the first Portuguese to miss a penalty in a major tournament.
The 31-year-old was denied against Bulgaria in a friendly in March, too, and has also wasted penalties against Sevilla, Malaga and Real Sociedad for Real Madrid in 2015/16.
Ronaldo scored the decisive penalty in the Champions League final shootout in May Ronaldo scored the decisive penalty in the Champions League final shootout in May.
It hasn’t all been bad news for Ronaldo from 12 yards this term – he’s scored eight penalties in normal play and fired in the match-winning spot-kick in the Champions League final shoot-out against Atletico Madrid in May.
However, as the table below shows, this has been a far from exemplary season from the spot for the Golden Boot winner…
About The Author
