Cristiano Ronaldo is gearing up for his record-breaking sixth FIFA World Cup and the football legend is ready for the challenge ahead. Before flying to the USA for the biggest FIFA World Cup in history, Ronaldo dismissed the fitness concerns surrounding him and confirmed that he is all fit. “Physically? I’m fine — have you not seen my matches?” “It has been good but tiring because we’ve worked hard,” he said.
“We’ve had the upper hand in our matches, but what matters most is when the ball starts rolling on the 17th, in the first game, and then when the pressure really starts to mount — that’s when we’ll see the true champions. We’ll only know at the end (on Portugal’s campaign). We’re really looking forward to it; we know the World Cup is always a special tournament, just like the European Championship, so we’re heading there full of hope,” he added.
Despite being one of the most decorated players in the world, Ronaldo has never won the elusive World Cup trophy. In fact, Portugal have never even made it to the final of the global event. Their best performance came in 1966, where they finished third.
In 2022, Ronaldo-led Portugal crashed out of the quarter-finals. An emotional Ronaldo left the stadium in tears following the defeat. He changed his club after the WC and joined the Al-Nassr football club. Ronaldo now plays in Saudi Arabia.
Portugal’s World Cup fixtures
Ronaldo’s Portugal will kick off their FIFA World Cup campaign against Congo on June 17 at the Houston Stadium in Houston. They will face Uzbekistan at the same venue on June 23. Portugal will face Colombia in their last league stage game on June 28 in Miami.
Ronaldo can share the field with Lionel Messi for the first time on the grand stage of World Cup for the first time. They can meet in the quarter-finals or before that, depending on their standings.
