GARY NEVILLE has admitted he ‘felt sorry’ for Cristiano Ronaldo when Portugal bowed out of the World Cup.
They were knocked out in the quarter-finals, losing 1-0 to surprise Morocco.
Ronaldo, 37, was eliminated after the group stage and was called up in the 51st minute of the quarter-finals with his team trailing.
However, he failed to save the match, as Portugal were eliminated from the tournament.
The striker left the field in tears, an image that touched Neville’s heart.
Talk to sky sportsthe pundit compared his former Manchester United team-mate’s situation to that of Lionel Messi – saying: ‘Messi has been handled by Argentina in terms of how the rest of the squad have surrounded him, and they play completely on his points of strength.
“While with Portugal and with (Fernando) Santos I had known Cristiano for so long, I thought he would do the same.
“I feel like something happened during the tournament which meant the plan changed and Santos thought: ‘I have to leave you out.
“But once you exclude Cristiano, it’s not just about excluding another player. It becomes world history.
“I actually felt sorry for Cristiano at the end when he was going through that tunnel in tears. It’s never a good picture.
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“You know he’s thinking, ‘That’s it, I’ll never play in this tournament again.’
“I wouldn’t classify it as an underperformance by Ronaldo, I’d say it’s an overperformance doing what he does at the age of 37, that’s just how it ended with his departure from the team. »
Santos, 68, was sacked by Portugal after his side left, after insisting he had “no regrets” about the way he handled Ronaldo.
The veteran striker was eliminated after the group stage after just one goal, from a penalty, in three matches.
His replacement Goncalo Ramos then scored a sensational hat-trick in the round of 16 against Switzerland.
Speaking after his team’s departure, Santos said: “I don’t think so, no regrets. I think it’s a team that played very well against Switzerland.
“Cristiano Ronaldo is a great player, he arrived when we thought it was necessary, so no regrets.
“If we take two people who have been the most upset, it’s me and Cristiano Ronaldo. Of course we’re angry, but that’s part of the job of the coach and the player. »
Neville, meanwhile, seems to have no hard feelings against Ronaldo.
The 47-year-old came under fire during the five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s interview with The Sun’s Piers Morgan when Ronaldo accused him of using his name for glory.
Neville was also cleared by his former teammate while working for Sky.
After being sacked by Manchester United last month, Ronaldo has been training at former club Real Madrid’s facilities to keep fit before his next move.
But Carlo Ancelotti’s team doesn’t seem interested in bringing him back to the Santiago Bernabeu.
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