Interpret the video below as you wish.
An astonishing photo after the final whistle shows Cristiano Ronaldo glimpsing as national team coach Fernando Santos walked towards him.
Failed because of Portugal’s pragmatic approach against Serbia (which didn’t work at all)? Santos gave his version of the facts during the press conference.
“Cristiano said he scored a goal in Serbia that wasn’t awarded (and would have qualified Portugal, editor)”, it sounded. “Obviously he was frustrated. No one will explain at the end of the match what went wrong and what didn’t happen.”
However, Santos’ position with Portugal is more fragile than ever. Many accuse the national coach of being overly defensive with a selection full of offensive talent.
Ronaldo also reacted after the missed qualification: “The result was hard to bear, but it wasn’t enough to make us give up. The goal of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup is still alive. No excuses. Portugal goes to Qatar.”
In Serbia, they did not care about the sulky Portuguese. Match winner Aleksandar Mitrovic celebrated his qualification to Qatar yesterday with his accompanying fans. The striker walked onto the field in his underwear and waved the Serbian flag.
What a difference about a year ago. Mitrovic then missed the decisive penalty against Scotland in the European Championship ticket battle.
Other citizens also celebrated a great success. Tennis player Novak Djokovic has shared a video on his social media of him getting totally crazy after qualifying.
Scores of fans in Belgrade harassed Ronaldo by dumping his famous celebration.
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