'I'm back' - record-breaking Ronaldo answers critics
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- Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice in Portugal's 5-0 win over Uzbekistan, becoming the first player (men's or women's) to score in six different World Cups at age 41 years and 138 days.
- Ronaldo is the second-oldest World Cup goalscorer in history, trailing only Cameroon's Roger Milla, who scored in 1994 against Russia at 42 years and 39 days.
- Portugal will face Colombia on Sunday 28 June (00:30 BST) in their final Group K match to determine who tops the standings after their 1-1 opening draw with DR Congo.
- Roberto Martinez defended his captain against 'unfair' criticism after the DR Congo result, calling him 'an icon, a role model that works hard every day' and praising his leadership through a 'dark week.'
- Wayne Rooney and Roy Keane both backed Ronaldo's response, with Keane dismissing the doubters: 'Doubted genius — he was never gone,' and Rooney noting that 'at 41 it's incredible' to score two at a World Cup.
- Ronaldo and Lionel Messi share the longest gap between a player's first and last World Cup goal at 20 years and 11 days, though Messi has 18 World Cup goals to Ronaldo's 10, having failed to score in 2010.
Why it matters: Ronaldo's brace — Portugal's third-biggest victory of the 2026 tournament — secured a decisive Group K finale against Colombia on 28 June, where the winner takes top spot. The performance turned a 'dark week' of criticism into a record-setting response that Martinez called an answer to 'unfair' noise.
