Superstar footballer Cristiano Ronaldo broke Irish hearts and then issued a snub during his TV interview after scoring two late goals to snatch victory from Ireland.
Ronaldo’s Portugal met Ireland in a World Cup qualifier in the Algarve and it seemed as though the Irish were heading for an unlikely victory as they led 1-0 going into the final few moments.
Facing a side packed with superstar players, Stephen Kenny’s men fought valiantly and took a shock lead when John Egan headed in a Jamie McGrath cross.
Teenage goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu had already saved a penalty from the great Ronaldo, denying him from becoming the all-time top international goalscorer in the history of the game.
However, Ronaldo was to have the final say as so often is the case.
The Irish team defended their slender lead with players blocking shots and protecting their penalty box brilliantly.
There is just no way to stop Ronaldo though, and in the final seconds of the match he rose above the Irish defence to power a header past the helpless Bazunu.
The goal took him to 110 international goals, one ahead of the previous record holder Ali Daei of Iran.
Ronaldo could have been forgiven for revelling in his historic achievement, but with the scores tied at 1-1 and the game going into injury time, there was still work to be done.
A few moments later, the 36-year-old rose again to head home the winner in dramatic fashion.
As if that wasn’t insult enough, Ronaldo then walked out halfway through his after-match interview with RTE broadcaster Tony O’Donoghue.
The star, who has just re-joined Manchester United 12 years after leaving them for Real Madrid, answered O’Donoghue’s first couple of questions.
However, before the interviewer could finish asking a third, Ronaldo began to slide away and issued a cheeky thumbs up to the camera as he backed out of the shot.
Some Irish fans were quick to criticise the star on social media, but most were aware the snub was not malicious but more cheeky, as Ronaldo wanted to return to his dressing room and celebrate with his Portuguese team-mates.
Take a look at the incident for yourself below.
?? 2-1 ??
Cristiano Ronaldo tells @Corktod he always believed Portugal could come back against Ireland before making a swift exit.#PORIRL #WorldCup2022 #COYBIG pic.twitter.com/Hu4WfGJntR— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) September 1, 2021
