What Germany taught Ronaldo: World's best player needs a team

If this was an old school football video game, then the game plan would have been simple: give the ball to Ronaldo right outside your penalty area and dribble across the length of the pitch, beating the opposition XI and calmly slotting it into the goal. We have all done it. And really, it made you feel a little like God on that football field. You could create, you could finish, you could do what you want and you didn’t need any assistance. However, Germany showed Ronaldo and the world that being the best player in the world matters little at the World Cup especially if you don’t have the team-mates to back you up. In the real world, the best player in the world is only as good as his team. In the Fifa World Rankings, Germany are ranked no.2 and Portugal are no.4 but the ease with which the Germans cruised to a 4-0 victory suggested that the gap is much wider. [caption id=“attachment_1573783” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo stands on the pitch as German players celebrate following Portugal’s 4-0 loss to Germany. AP[/caption] It was sad to watch Ronaldo being reduced to a whirlpool of disappointment, rage and bewilderment but perhaps it was just as well; perhaps it is too much to expect one man to carry his team to World Cup glory; perhaps it is impossible if Pepe is one of your team-mates. Portugal were already 2-0 down by the time the Real Madrid defender had a meltdown and head-butted Thomas Mueller. On a good day, when he can avoid his anger spasms, Pepe is one of the best defenders in the world. But his inability to see the bigger picture could not have gone down well with Ronaldo. For Portugal to have any chance, Ronaldo had to be at the top of his game. And for that to happen, he needed his team-mates to step up. But they let him down. Before the red card to Pepe, Portugal had attacked and they had created chances. Not goal-scoring chances but chances nonetheless. It wasn’t as one-sided as the final scoreline suggested. But after being reduced to 10-men, Portugal had no chance against a German team that is the pre-tournament favourite for many. In the first half, Ronaldo managed just 15 touches on the ball. It improved in the second half but he wasn’t influencing the game as we know he can. He didn’t run at the German defence and certainly didn’t use his pace to trouble them. A total of 5 shots – only 2 forced a save out of the German keeper – showed a desperate touch to the FIFA’s reigning player of the year. If Ronaldo and Portugal thought things couldn’t get any worse – then they did when Fabio Coentrao pulled up and had to be stretchered off in the second half. If Portugal want to advance, they need to find a system to involve Ronaldo more. It has to be a system with Ronaldo at the centre of it – a system that works for Ronaldo; not against him. Nani can be a crucial peg. He remains a player with a great deal of promise and this might be his stage to shine. Robbed of two of their best defenders, Portugal will find it difficult against the United States on 22 June and 2010 World Cup quarter-finalists Ghana on 26 June in their remaining group games but if they can find a way to get the best out of Ronaldo, they still might have a chance of winning. For the moment though, that remains a big ‘if’.