Portugal beat Spain: The day Ronaldo taught Lamine Yamal

Cristiano Ronaldo beat Lamine Yamal in their first meeting, helping Portugal beat Spain and win the Nations League.

1. All eyes are on the clash between two stars: one is on the rise, Lamine Yamal ; the other, Cristiano Ronaldo , is in the twilight of his career.

The future of the Spanish national team is now. No one in the Luis de la Fuente era has been directly involved in more goals than Lamine Yamal – 6 goals and 8 assists.

Ronaldo celebrates victory with his teammates. Photo: Imago

The paradox of the Nations League final: for Portugal, the past is the present.

Cristiano Ronaldo has just scored his 20th goal in his 25th game under coach Roberto Martinez.

It's interesting to see how CR7 "aged": he achieved an efficiency of 0.80 goals/match with the Spanish strategist; much higher than previous coaches: 0.62 with Fernando Santos, 0.57 with Paulo Bento, 0.07 with Carlos Queiroz and 0.28 with Felipe Scolari.

The very first situation where Lamine Yamal lost the ball was because Cristiano stole it.

Proving that age – Ronaldo is 40 – may have slowed his game down somewhat, but not his hunger, he continued to drop deep into the home field to steal the ball from the number 19 again.

As if that wasn't enough, Real Madrid's greatest striker scored the equalizer to make it 2-2, sending the match into a fateful penalty shootout.

On Portugal's journey to the UEFA Nations League title , Ronaldo scored in the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.

2. After CR7's goal, the Allianz Arena - Bayern Munich's home ground exploded. A few days ago, at the same place, German spectators applauded when Ronaldo left the field in the semi-final match, which won the home team 2-1.

To the tune of The White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army", Portuguese fans and part of the German audience chanted: "Cristiano Ronaldo, Cristiano Ronaldo, Cristiano Ronaldo" .

Even the MC at the stadium emphasized CR7's name more than any other player who scored in Munich. A worthy tribute to a legend.

Ronaldo played effectively and enthusiastically. Photo: Imago

“I won many titles, but nothing is more wonderful than winning with the Portuguese team ,” Ronaldo said afterwards.

“The tears are because I feel like I have accomplished my mission. It is wonderful. This is our country. We are a small country, but with great aspirations,” he explained the celebration .

The 2025 Nations League title day was Ronaldo's 221st match with Portugal and the emotion was as special as the day he made his debut.

“I have lived in many countries and played for many clubs, but when it comes to Portugal, the feeling is very special,” the captain emphasized.

The anthem honoring Portugal's number 7 captain rang out again as he left the pitch in pain, replaced by Goncalo Ramos.

“I felt pain since the warm-up. That feeling has lasted for a while. But for the team, if I have to break my leg, I am ready,” he said emotionally.

Ronaldo always gives everything for Portugal. “This is a final, I have to play and I gave everything, did everything I could. I helped the team with a goal.”

3. While Cristiano is mentioned for both the past and present, Lamine is expected more for the future than the present.

Before the ball rolled in Munich, Ronaldo spoke up to defend the best young player of EURO 2024. "For the good of football, I ask that the pressure on Lamine Yamal be reduced . "

For his part, Yamal, despite his respect for Ronaldo, declared victory and hinted that he deserved the Ballon d'Or.

Yamal was involved in Martin Zubimendi's opening goal: he played a beautiful pass that left centre-back Goncalo Inacio scrambling to block, allowing the Basque midfielder to finish.

Ronaldo won his first match against Lamine Yamal. Photo: Imago

However, this was not Yamal's best form overall. He committed two fouls, had the ball stolen by Ronaldo twice, and was tired by Nuno Mendes.

Yamal did not have a partnership with right-back Oscar Mingueza. Lamine was rather superficial in defending in the situation that led to Nuno Mendes' equalizer at 1-1.

Then, it was Nuno Mendes who got past Yamal and then crossed the ball to hit the Spanish defender, allowing Ronaldo to tap the ball with his right foot to beat Unai Simon.

In extra time, Yamal was forced to leave the pitch. “We needed energy, so I had to change the wings. Lamine is a player like everyone else and he also needs to regulate his fitness ,” De la Fuente explained.

Lamine Yamal received a valuable lesson from Ronaldo: talent alone is not enough, more important are determination and professionalism.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/bo-dao-nha-ha-tay-ban-nha-ronaldo-day-hoc-cho-lamine-yamal-2409540.html