The British national television service BBC made a review of the move of the Portuguese coach Fernando Santos to sit Cristiano Ronaldo on the bench for the round of 16 match against Switzerland.
Without him, the national team looked much better and literally dismantled the opposition, hinting that Ronaldo could stay in the same place for the rest of the championship, regardless of how far Portugal go. The BBC compares the situation to Manchester United where Ronaldo recently experienced the same thing.
“Portugal did the same as Manchester United by deciding that it might be better without him. He really played better without Ronaldo, and the convincing victory is a reward for coach Fernando Santos for his bravery. It was, without a doubt, the boldest move of this World Cup and certainly Santos’ boldest in the eight years he has been in charge of Portugal.
After being shown the door at Manchester United due to laziness and open attitudes in the club’s hierarchy, he now finds himself in marginal territory that he probably thought was untouchable for him. What’s next for the forgotten idol? At best, he will probably be on the bench against Morocco,” said the BBC’s analysis.
Portugal plays against Morocco on Saturday at 16:00 and has a great chance to be among the top four in the world again after 16 years.
