Superstar Cristiano Ronaldo made his first comments following Portugal’s 1-0 upset loss to Morocco in the Quarterfinals of the World Cup.
While Ronaldo did not announce his retirement from international play, the 37-year-old is aware that his dream of winning a World Cup will not come to fruition.
“In my five appearances at World Cups over 16 years, always playing alongside great players and supported by millions of Portuguese, I have given my all,” Ronaldo wrote on his Instagram account. “I left everything I had on the pitch. I’ll never shrink from a battle, and I have never given up on that dream. Unfortunately, that dream ended yesterday.”
Ronaldo became the first male soccer player in history to score at five World Cups in Portugal’s opening match against Ghana. However, he started his country’s final two contests on the bench following a dispute with manager Fernando Santos over being substituted in the last game of the group stage.
Ronaldo recently had his contract terminated by Manchester United and remains without a club.
FanDuel Sportsbook has France as odds-on World Cup favorites at +115.
