Pitch invaders desperate to get close to Cristiano Ronaldo have sparked serious “intentions” concerns, with Portugal seeing Euro 2024 games disrupted.
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All-time great is a star attraction in GermanySupporters desperate to get a photo with himEntering the pitch raises security questionsWHAT HAPPENED?
CR7 is one of the biggest draws at this summer’s European Championship in Germany. He remains captain of his country at 39 years of age and is showing no sign of slowing down – despite questions being asked of his value to a cause that has another continental crown in its sights.
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Ronaldo’s latest outing saw him become the all-time leading assist-maker in Euros history – with another record added to his collection – but a 3-0 victory over Turkey was halted on several occasions as selfie-hunting supporters entered the field of play.
WHAT MARTINEZ SAID
None of those jumping the advertising hoardings meant any harm, but that may not always be the case. Portugal boss Roberto Martinez has said of the risks involved when fans chase down on-field icons: “It is a concern because today we were lucky that the intentions of the fans were good. We all love fans who recognise the big stars and the big icons in their lives. You can understand there is a very difficult moment if those intentions are wrong the players are exposed and we need to be careful.
“I don’t think it should happen on a football pitch. There is a lot of security and a lot of protection and I don’t think that should happen and we should probably give a message to the fans that it is not the right way. You are not going to get anything out of it and probably the measures get worse for the future and it’s not good to get the players so exposed when you’re running on the pitch.”
GettyWHAT NEXT FOR RONALDO?
Portugal’s win over Turkey has seen them safely through to the last-16 of Euro 2024 with a game to spare. That may mean Ronaldo is now given a rest, with the evergreen frontman desperate to add to his medal collection after missing out on major honours with Al-Nassr in 2023-24.