June 10th 2024.
Cristiano Ronaldo, one of the greatest football players of all time, has achieved an impressive feat of over 200 caps for his national team, Portugal. Despite his exceptional record, former England player Paul Merson has suggested that Portugal should make the tough decision of benching Ronaldo at the start of Euro 2024.
At the age of 39, Ronaldo is entering his sixth European Championships, after spending the last 18 months playing for Saudi Pro League club Al Nassr. During his time there, he has managed to score an impressive 64 goals in 70 appearances. With 206 caps and 128 goals for Portugal, he is undoubtedly their star player and will be looking to add to his tally in the upcoming tournament in Germany.
However, Merson believes that it would be beneficial for Portugal to start the tournament with Ronaldo on the bench and only bring him in once they have secured their spot in the knockout stages. As Portugal is in Group F, their first match is against Czech Republic on June 18, followed by games against Turkey and Georgia.
Assessing Portugal's chances of winning the Euros, Merson shared his thoughts with Sportskeeda, saying, "Portugal may have an aging team, but they also have a lot of experience within the squad. There is too much individual quality for them not to gel together as a unit, so I think they will do well at Euro 2024."
Merson also praised Portugal's defensive strength with players like Pepe and Ruben Dias, as well as their midfield creativity and attacking prowess with players like Bruno Fernandes and the evergreen Cristiano Ronaldo. However, he believes that the decision to include Ronaldo in the starting lineup should be based on his performance during the training camp, rather than his impressive record in Saudi Arabia.
"I personally would leave him out for the first two games and secure qualification before bringing him back for the final match," Merson said. "If he performs well, then he deserves to keep his spot, but it's a massive jump for someone to come into the European Championships after playing at a lower level in Saudi."
In 2016, Portugal made history by becoming European champions for the first time, but they were knocked out in the last-16 stage by Belgium in the 2020 edition. They also performed well in the 2022 World Cup, topping their group before being eliminated in the quarter-finals by Morocco.
Ronaldo's former Manchester United teammates, Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot, as well as Manchester City's Ruben Dias and Bernardo Silva, are also included in Portugal's Euro 2024 squad. It will be interesting to see how Portugal performs in the upcoming tournament, with their aging yet experienced squad and their star player Ronaldo.
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