"It's hard to win with 10 men and a cone": social media is merciless towards Cristiano Ronaldo after Portugal's draw

Having missed his match against the Democratic Republic of Congo for Portugal's entry into the 2026 World Cup (1-1), Cristiano Ronaldo is the focus of all the criticism.

The terrible goal drought didn't end Wednesday night in the sweltering Texas heat. It even crossed a symbolic threshold. In Houston, where Portugal stumbled in their opening match of the 2026 World Cup against the Democratic Republic of Congo (1-1), Cristiano Ronaldo went ten games without finding the net in a major tournament. You now have to go back to the first match of the 2022 World Cup against Ghana (a 3-2 victory) to find the last time the five-time Ballon d'Or winner scored in a European Championship or World Cup.

On Wednesday night, the 41-year-old striker had a poor game. He notably missed the target twice from excellent passes by Francisco Conceição when the Seleção were trying to regain the lead (68th, 74th minutes). Another statistic speaks volumes about the Al-Nassr player's performance: only 25 touches of the ball in over 90 minutes on the pitch, his lowest total in a major tournament match.

Following Portugal's poor performance, the national team's all-time leading scorer (143 goals) became the focus of intense criticism, particularly on social media.

"Cristiano Ronaldo continues to hold the national team hostage"

"Years go by and Cristiano Ronaldo continues to hold the national team hostage. The best generation in history thrown away for not learning to play without him," one internet user complained on X. "CR41 has been around for far too long, every match starts with 10 men," grumbled another, referring to the Portuguese captain's age. "Going from Messi's football to Ronaldo's is tough," sighed a third fan. Meanwhile, others competed to find the most imaginative ways to mock the former Real Madrid and Manchester United player. "It's hard to win with 10 men and a traffic cone," quipped one supporter, posting a photoshopped image of CR7 disguised as a cone.

The missed opportunity in the 68th minute is particularly in the sights of many fans, who do not understand why Cristiano Ronaldo decided to take Conceiçao's cross at the near post when he could have left the ball to Bruno Fernandes, (better?) positioned just behind him.

"The old man desperately wants to be the savior."

"How desperate the old guy is to be the savior," one X user pointed out. Another widely shared video shows an entire basketball team carrying someone in a desperate attempt to get them to score. The caption reads: "The entire Portuguese national team trying to help Cristiano Ronaldo score his first goal in this World Cup."

Social media isn't the only platform being harsh on the Portuguese striker. "Because he desperately wants to score, he gets in Bruno Fernandes' way," Thierry Henry fumed on the American channel Fox Sports. "It's the team that needs to score, not you," the former French striker concluded.