 Ronaldo blames ref for knockout
07/06/2006
Following Portugal's exit from the World Cup last night Cristiano Ronaldo heaped blame on the referee for failing to officiate the game properly.
The match was a disappointment compared to the first semi-final between Germany and Italy and was decided by a single goal, a penalty scored by French captain Zinedine Zidane.
Despite his team's wholly unimpressive performance, Ronaldo was one of the brighter elements of the game, posing the only real threat that the French defence had to deal with.
The Manchester United winger was roundly booed throughout the game by supporters, apparently unhappy with his antics against England, and following the match Ronaldo expressed his view that the treatment his team received from the referee was just as harsh.
"We played well and did our best but the referee didn't help us," the 21-year-old said.
"Everyone who saw the match could see that the referee wasn't fair. He should have shown yellow cards but he did not because Portugal is a small country.
"We just have to keep on working and then we will be a big country."
Portugal will now have to settle for third place at best when they play Germany on Sunday, although they are the outsiders going into the game, with odds of 11/4 compared to the hosts' 4/5.
Ronaldo has been valued at 12/1 to become the first goalscorer while the favourite is Miroslav Klose at 4/1, followed by Oliver Neuville at 5/1.
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