Diogo Dalot has firmly challenged the notion that Portugal are less effective and more harmful with Cristiano Ronaldo in the starting team by arguing that the 41-year-old has been and continues to be a valuable player at the international scale.
Having just won the Port-Futsal tournament in front of what might be yet another significant summer tournament going on in the country, the Manchester United and Portugal defender made the remarks in an interview with United legend Rio Ferdinand in his own defence of his long-term team mate.
Dalot: Critics Are scared of Ronaldo in the Team.
In a very open fashion, Dalot said that the fact that Ronaldo makes it to the team sheet is the reason why the other teams treat Portugal in a completely different way even before the ball is kicked.
Dalot replied to Ferdinand: I believe we will never be a worse and more threatening team with him on the field. When other teams notice that, having Cristiano in the lineup, it will not be the same when he is not.
The full-back claimed the space and opportunities that Ronaldo would provide to his teammates is the best tactical role he performs in this phase of his career and especially in the penalty area.
He does know that and he tells him to the point: “Listen in the penalty area, go in the penalty area with me, because there is at least one player who will be with me throughout the entire time.
Cy cannot abandon me in the penalty area, it will become a goal.
It is a simple yet efficient argument.
Any defender who did not mark Ronaldo in the box risks being killed and the one who marks him closely leaves a gap to the other attackers of Portugal.
The Pressing Debate Ronaldo Explains Himself.
Ronaldo has been one of the strongest criticisms of the team in the past few years due to his contribution to the team press. The argument was especially vociferous when at his second stint at Manchester United, his off-the-ball efforts and maneuverability were called into question.
This was directly handled by Dalot as he remembered having talked to Ronaldo on the same matter of how he approached the game.
The reason is that, as Dalot himself explained, he has to feel energy in order to score goals: this is how he thinks.
It almost looks like he is considering saying, ‘okay, you want goals? I must be a fresh man, so that when we win the ball I can be in the box and be fresh in the head.
In the case of Dalot, such mentality is not laziness – it is calculated and smart. The whole game of Ronaldo is to be there and be net in the time of need.
The Argument is Supported by the Record of Ronaldo at United.
The productivity of Ronaldo during his second stint at Old Trafford which was termed by Dalot as a short time time span made many of his critics to be quiet.
Although there is a debate on his pressing and link-up play, he produced results in the only metric that has ever defined his career; goals.
Ronaldo had scored 18 goals in the Premier League and also 6 goals in the champions league making it 24 goals in 38 appearances in all the competitions.
To a player who has been written off by some quarters of the English football press, that was a strong case number.
World Cup Debate Remains Raging Over Portugal.
The remarks by Dalot are timed, considering that Ronaldo is still in the news as far as his future as a long-term member of the Portuguese national team is concerned.
As the world cup beckons and Portugal is blessed with a generation of players with the ability to play as attackers, some analysts have wondered why the team does not play as well as when they do not have the all time record scorer at the heart of the team.
Dalot, who will have to be part of the plans of Roberto Martinez during this summer does not share this opinion. His message was simple when the name of Ronaldo is on the list, then Portugal is no longer the same team a opponent would want to face.
Something Special in the Mentality, yet to be respected.
In addition to strategies and figures, Dalot kept on stressing the psychological power Ronaldo holds. The defender has mentioned playing with him, both in the club and in international level, as a massive privilege in the past interviews.
It seems that respect has its basis in observing a person capable of sustaining the standards of elites and decision-making at 41, still planning well, still increasing speed in crucial situations, still making their opponent structure their whole defense around a single individual.
That is all there is to say to Dalot.
