Neil Humphreys: Ronaldo wins on his own
Surrounded by mediocre teammates, ageless great carries his country to victory
Cristiano Ronaldo shouldn't be doing this any more. He's 33. He's too old. He's in decline, a once great winger on his way to joining the washed up.
Common sense says it can't be done. Biology says it can't be done. Ronaldo's birth certificate says it can't be done.
| PORTUGAL | MOROCCO |
| 1 | 0 |
But his eternal pursuit of perfection makes him deaf to conventional wisdom, blind to cynicism and dumb about nothing. He knows exactly what he's doing.
He's becoming the greatest striker that the beautiful game has ever seen.
Each World Cup is supposed to usher in a rebirth, a new generation, new stars to watch, a new day. But it's Groundhog Day with the old guy again.
There's only one star to watch. The star. Ronaldo. CR 7. He's a brand without parallel, a goal-scorer without equal.
His slavish devotion to peak performance is all the more impressive when one considers he's lumbered with an average side.
He's halfway to the Golden Boot, with four goals in two games. His 85th goal made him the most prolific European footballer in tournament history.
At times, it can feel like he breaks records in spite of Portugal, not because of them.
Fernando Santos' stuttering players were very lucky to win 1-0 against Morocco last night. They were lucky to have Ronaldo. He was the difference. He always is.
Just consider his decisive goal.
In the fourth minute, Joao Moutinho whipped a cross towards the six-yard box, a congested area, but Portugal's No.7 was conspicuous by his absence. He was out of sight, but never out of mind.
Those tanned, teak-like legs took off, a couple of muscular pistons calibrated for precisely these moments.
The run took milliseconds, but the journey began 25 years ago. Every lonely bench press, squat and leg curl allowed him to leave Morocco's trailing defenders.
By the time, he reached Moutinho's cross, the ball had dipped to chest height. No matter. Ronaldo's diving header was textbook stuff, a routine finish mastered on muddy fields every morning for over two decades.
Morocco's defending was hopeless, but to blame others for Ronaldo's brilliance seems petty, as if his superhuman dedication to greatness must be explained away or undermined.
Once Moutinho's cross was floated towards the box, no one was going to stop Ronaldo, a mantra that has followed him from Madeira.
Patrice Evra's quirky tale about his former Manchester United teammate has gone viral this week and with good reason.
It's a tale of obsession and an unswerving commitment to winning.
According to Evra, Ronaldo once lost to Rio Ferdinand in a table tennis game in front of their United teammates. The skinny newcomer went home, hired a table tennis coach, trained every day and returned a fortnight later.
He beat Ferdinand. He had no choice. He has programmed himself to prevail.
Some people suffer with lactose intolerance. Ronaldo has failure intolerance. There's a psychological inability to break down and digest defeat.
His record-breaking 85th goal will inevitably invite comparisons with players from different eras, but the goal tallies are worth considering.
Pele scored 77 goals in full internationals. But his Brazilian sides were arguably superior to most of the Portuguese teams that Ronaldo has carried through tournaments - including this one.
Lionel Messi stands on 64 international goals. It's one Ronaldo record that the little Argentinian is never going to catch.
Morocco may well be remembered as the greatest World Cup nation to finish on zero points, considering the North Africans face Spain in their final Group B game.
Herve Renard's men matched Portugal for the most part and tested their opponents' ageing, rickety defence throughout the second half.
In the first half, Portugal cultivated just two clearcut opportunities - Ronaldo scored one and almost collected an assist with the other.
His delightful chest and chip into Goncalo Guedes' path displayed a nimble elegance not commonly associated with the man of chiselled muscle.
Unfortunately, Guedes shot straight at the keeper. Ronaldo's colleagues just aren't in his class.
Messi often laments the burden of carrying a mediocre nation. Ronaldo has done the same job, without complaint, since Portugal's golden generation broke up after 2004.
He did it again last night. Portugal were ponderous in the first half and jittery in the second.
Morocco played with confidence, verve and more than a little swagger. Portugal played with Ronaldo. In the end, that's all they needed.
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