World Cup 2026 Soccer Cristiano Ronaldo cuts off Lionel Messi question in tense World Cup moment By Ryan Giancola Published June 24, 2026, 12:16 p.m. ET See more of our coverage in your search results.
Add The New York Post on Google Cristiano Ronaldo was not in the mood for comparisons.
The Portuguese striker did not want to talk about Argentina’s Lionel Messi after his country’s 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan on Tuesday in the World Cup.
When Ronaldo stepped up to the podium for his post-match press conference, a question about Messi was raised and Ronaldo quickly turned away, looked at another reporter and said, “Go ahead,” four times in Spanish while the other reporter was still trying to squeeze in his Messi query.
Ronaldo made his mark early in Tuesday’s win, scoring twice in the first half.
It came after there was a lot of criticism for the 41-year-old’s middling performance in the 1-1 draw with the DR Congo.
Some even questioned if Ronaldo should start in an all-important match against Uzbekistan, but the striker answered all doubts by scoring for the first time in the tournament, just six minutes into the contest.
Ronaldo added one more goal to his tally in the 39th minute. With the two goals, Ronaldo becomes the first man in World Cup history to score in six tournaments.
Ronaldo broke onto the World Cup scene at just 21 years old, appearing six times for Portugal in the 2006 World Cup, scoring on a penalty kick against Iran.
Ronaldo in the match against Uzbekistan AP Photo/Eric Gay Over the past 20 years, Ronaldo has played for many clubs, including Man United, Real Madrid, Juventus and now Saudi club Al-Nassr. Throughout his career, he has hoisted many trophies — five Champions League titles, three Premier League titles, Euro 2016 and five Ballon d’Ors.
But still one major trophy eludes him: the FIFA World Cup.
Portugal has yet to win the World Cup since the tournament started. That lofty achievement is something that his counterpart in Messi accomplished in 2022.
Both players have been compared throughout their careers because they represented rival Spanish clubs for nine years and are viewed as some of the best to play the World’s Game in the 2000s.
Lionel Messi set a record of his own at this World Cup. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect Every match of the FIFA World Cup will air on either FOX or FOX Sports 1. If you don’t have cable, you can take advantage of a DIRECTV free trial to stream it all.
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Messi also broke a record in this year’s World Cup by becoming the all-time goals leader. However, that achievement could be broken soon with 27-year-old French striker Kylian Mbappe two goals behind him.
Both Argentina and Portugal seem destined to make the Round of 32.
If Portugal wins Group K, it could set up a collision course for both teams to meet in the quarterfinals.
