Cristiano Ronaldo was involved in a bizarre altercation on Saturday night after a supporter preceded to run onto the pitch and pick up the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.
It came during Portugal’s 3-0 win against Bosnia and Herzegovina, with Bruno Fernandes scoring twice and Bernardo Silva notching his 10th international goal.
Despite much uncertainty shrouding his international career following the Selecao’s disappointing exit from the 2022 World Cup, the 38-year-old was selected as part of Roberto Martinez’s Portugal squad for this summer’s Euro 2024 qualifiers.
It came as many thought the Al-Nassr star would retire from international football after they were beaten in the quarter-finals of the Qatar World Cup by Morocco.
But Ronaldo is once again proving everyone wrong and has gone on to score a duo of goals in each of his last two international appearances against Liechtenstein and Luxembourg
RONALDO LIFTED UP BY FAN ¿¿ Pitch invader during Portugal-Bosnia & Herzegovina match in Lisbon hugs 38-year-old striker before picking him up and hitting Siu cele. When they say you should never meet your heroes, it is often for your hero’s own safety.pic.twitter.com/TaDjdmoTkx
— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) June 17, 2023
Cristiano Ronaldo (right) was involved in a bizarre altercation with a spectator during Portugal’s 3-0 win vs Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ronaldo (right) smiled and entertained the pitch invader and performed his famous ‘Siu’ celebration with the man
But in bizarre scenes the superstar was hoisted into the air by the man who had broken onto the field
He might have failed to get on the score sheet tonight but was involved in a strange moment as a fan ran on to the pitch to embrace him.
Ronaldo remained motionless as he was grabbed by the spectator who seemed to give the former Manchester United forward a bear hug, before bowing down in front of him, all while holding a Portugal flag.
Seeming to be equally confused by the incident, Ronaldo stood as the pitch invader rose to his feet once again. Wrapping his arms around the Portuguese striker he preceded to hoist him a couple of feet into the air, in a rather comical moment, before dropping him back onto the floor.
Standing face to face, the pitch invader then performs his ‘Siu’ celebration with Ronaldo, who also joined in, throwing his arms down towards the ground.
The supporter then quickly sprinted away to evade the encroaching security guards. A strange, yet, humorous incident to say the least and hats off to the forward, who smiled and shook the hand of the spectator.
After the game, Ronaldo posted a few shots of himself on Instagram with the caption: ‘Great win, team! Thanks to all the Portuguese people for their support!’
It comes after a difficult first season in the Saudi Pro League with Ronaldo’s side, Al-Nassr, missing out on the league title to Al-Ittihad, who clinched the title by five points.
And the Portugal boss, Martinez, believes Ronaldo’s time in Saudi Arabia will help Portugal improve as a team.
‘Playing in a non-European club is sometimes an advantage when playing in the national team’ he told reporters.
Ronaldo has now scored two goals in each of his two games for Portugal since being named in Roberto Martinez squad for the Euro 2024 qualifiers
‘We have three ways of analysing a player: individual quality, experience and commitment. Cristiano’s commitment is complete.
‘He is an example for the locker room, an example for Portuguese and world football. He has played 198 matches for the national team.
‘Cristiano and [veteran FC Porto defender] Pepe are examples of Portuguese football, and we need them to pass all the experience and wisdom to the youngest players.
‘Like any other player, he [Ronaldo] needs to train well in order to play. We need a high-performance environment with competition for our players,’ he added.