 |
Portugal concluded their World Cup 2026 group stage campaign with a goalless draw against Colombia. This result was enough for Roberto Martinez's team to qualify for the round of 32, but they lost the top spot in Group K to the South American representatives.
On the Hard Rock pitch on the morning of June 28th, Portugal failed to project the image of a title contender. The team in maroon jerseys struggled to control the game, created fewer opportunities than their opponents, and only kept a clean sheet thanks to the outstanding performance of goalkeeper Diogo Costa.
Speaking to Tri Thức - Znews , coach Miguel Santos, former head coach of the SC Braga women's team and a former colleague of Ruben Amorim, said that the draw against Colombia exposed many problems that Roberto Martinez needs to address before entering the knockout round.
According to the Portuguese coach, if only looking at the result, Portugal achieved their goal. However, in terms of overall play, Colombia was the better team.
"Colombia created almost twice as many scoring opportunities as Portugal. Based on what happened on the pitch, a draw would have been more advantageous for us than for Colombia," Santos commented.
The statistics on the pitch quite clearly reflected that assessment. Colombia constantly put pressure on Portugal with fast-paced attacks down both flanks, especially in the first half. Without Diogo Costa's six saves and a goal disallowed by VAR at the end of the match, Portugal could very well have left the field with a defeat.
Ronaldo remains a key player, but he can't carry the entire game.
Besides the discussion about his playing style, Cristiano Ronaldo continues to be the focus of all debate. The Portuguese captain played the full 90 minutes against Colombia, marking his third consecutive match playing the full time in the group stage. Although he didn't score in this game, Ronaldo still received a lot of trust from Roberto Martinez.
According to Miguel Santos, Ronaldo's failure to score isn't the big issue. The real problem lies in how the coaching staff utilizes a player who has already turned 41.
"I don't think fans should expect Ronaldo to score in every game. No player in the world can do that. The important thing is that he remains a very high-quality striker and always gives his all," Santos said.
The coach believes that many people are viewing Ronaldo in an extreme way. When he scores, all the praise is given. But if he fails to score in just one game, the debate about whether Ronaldo should be in the starting lineup resurfaces.
 |
According to coach Miguel Santos, Portugal's biggest challenge right now is not Ronaldo, but how Roberto Martinez utilizes his captain. |
According to Santos, Ronaldo's professional quality has never been in doubt. The key is figuring out how to maximize the value of a player at the age of 41.
"From a physiological standpoint, a 41-year-old player cannot maintain the same intensity as someone who is 25 or 30 years old. In my opinion, Ronaldo shouldn't have played the full 90 minutes in all three group stage matches," he analyzed.
This is also a major difference between Santos and Roberto Martinez.
While the Portuguese national team's head coach still places his full trust in the captain, Santos believes Ronaldo needs a more scientifically managed playing time to maintain his physical fitness for the crucial stages of the tournament.
According to him, Ronaldo's performance should depend on the opponent rather than applying a fixed formula.
In the match against Uzbekistan, the Central Asian team proactively dropped deep with a low defensive block, allowing Ronaldo to operate more freely in the penalty area. That was also his most effective performance since the start of the tournament.
Conversely, against the Democratic Republic of Congo or Colombia, both teams were willing to push high up the pitch and fiercely contest the midfield. In that context, Santos believes Portugal needs players with more speed and mobility in the early stages of the match, before bringing Ronaldo on at the appropriate time.
He emphasized that this wasn't about removing Ronaldo from the squad, but about finding the most effective way to utilize the experienced striker.
Roberto Martinez needs to make bold changes against Croatia.
Not only did Miguel Santos express concerns about how to utilize Ronaldo, but he also suggested that Portugal needed to adjust many tactical details if they wanted to overcome Croatia in the round of 32.
According to him, the team's biggest problem lies in its ball distribution. Against Colombia, Portugal's ball circulation speed wasn't high enough to stretch the opponent's defense. This resulted in the team creating very few truly dangerous opportunities.
 |
Cristiano Ronaldo remains a key player for Portugal, but how the 41-year-old striker's energy is managed will determine their ambitions to go deep in the 2026 World Cup. |
Conversely, Colombia consistently exploited the space behind Portugal's midfield. Santos specifically pointed out that Joao Felix failed to maintain the necessary defensive intensity on the left flank, allowing Colombia to create numerous dangerous attacks from that wing.
He also noted that Portugal lost their intensity after halftime, something that had been present in their match against the Democratic Republic of Congo.
"The team reduced the intensity of their challenges, slowed down the pace of ball circulation, and also lacked the aggression in one-on-one duels," Santos commented.
One rare bright spot was the appearance of Rafael Leao in the second half.
The AC Milan forward brought a new burst of energy with his speedy dribbling and nearly scored a late goal. According to Santos, that performance was enough for Roberto Martinez to consider giving Leao a starting opportunity or at least bringing him on earlier in the match against Croatia.
The Portuguese strategist also believes that the defense is not the area that needs significant changes. What Roberto Martinez needs to do is refresh the midfield and attack to increase speed and pressure on opponents.
After finishing second in their group, Portugal found themselves in a more difficult bracket and will face Croatia in the Round of 32. If they overcome the Balkan representative, they will likely have to face Spain in the next round.
 |
Coach Miguel Santos believes Portugal needs to build a flexible system to maximize Ronaldo's effectiveness. |
Nevertheless, Miguel Santos still sees a positive aspect. According to him, facing Croatia allows Portugal to confront a European team with similar climatic adaptations, instead of continuing to face South American opponents who perform very well in North American weather conditions.
However, that advantage will mean little if Portugal doesn't improve their technical quality.
"Croatia is a very strong team and the players from both sides know each other very well. This will be a match where there is no room for error. Portugal is capable of winning, but Croatia is perfectly capable of doing the same," Santos concluded.
The Portuguese coach's comments reveal that Roberto Martinez's biggest challenge right now isn't whether or not to continue putting his faith in Ronaldo. More importantly, it's about building a system flexible enough to maximize the 41-year-old star's value, while also helping Portugal maintain intensity and sharpness throughout the 90 minutes.
Because in the knockout rounds, where a single moment can decide the fate of the entire tournament, using Ronaldo wisely can be the difference between a title contender and a team that is eliminated early.
Source: https://znews.vn/martinez-dang-dung-sai-ronaldo-post1663949.html
