Cristiano Ronaldo's quiet display in Portugal's opening World Cup match against DR Congo has sparked debate over his role in the starting XI. Despite struggling to influence proceedings, Portugal's captain failed to score and finished with just 25 touches, the fewest he has recorded in a major tournament match for Portugal when playing the full 90 minutes.
Head coach Roberto Martinez has defended his decision to keep Ronaldo on the pitch throughout the match, arguing that removing the game's most prolific goalscorer would have made little sense when Portugal were still searching for a winning goal.
Martinez believes Portugal's problems began after taking the lead, as his side moved away from the aggressive approach that had brought them early success and became too focused on retaining possession, allowing DR Congo to settle into the game and execute their plans more effectively.
The Portugal coach urged calm and pointed to past World Cups in which eventual champions suffered early setbacks, insisting that one poor performance does not define a campaign.
