We have seen the last of Cristiano Ronaldo in a Portugal jersey, and we have seen the last of Portugal in this World Cup. After over 95 minutes of play, Portugal have lost 1-0 to Spain and have been knocked out in the Round of 16. And the emotions are now pouring out.

“Cristiano Ronaldo crying in the World Cup after his elimination,” wrote a fan after the defeat.

Cristiano Ronaldo stood frozen on the field before tears finally took over after Portugal lost 1-0 against Spain. Mikel Merino’s 91st-minute winner ended Portugal’s World Cup dream and almost certainly Ronaldo’s final World Cup campaign.  

The 41-year-old slowly walked towards the tunnel with his head down as teammates processed yet another painful exit from football’s biggest stage. After serving Portugal for 20 years, football’s biggest prize slipped away from Ronaldo one final time. 

For most of the night, neither Portugal nor Spain found enough quality to kill the game. Spain enjoyed more possession but did nothing much with it. Although Portugal stayed organized and looked to attack, their forwards did nothing much either. And after the score stayed 0-0 after the 70th minute, we knew that this game was going to be decided on moments. 

And that moment came when Ferran Torres slipped a through-ball to Merino. The Arsenal player calmly put the ball past Diogo Costa and ended Portugal’s dreams with one decisive touch. 

That late goal only exposed problems Portugal carried throughout the entire tournament despite entering with huge expectations.  

Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, Rafael Leão, Vitinha and Rúben Dias gave supporters genuine reasons for belief. Many viewed this as Portugal’s strongest squad in generations because of its balance, depth and experience.  Yet other than the convincing 5-0 win against Uzbekistan, Portugal never looked dangerous enough to get the game under control. 

That is exactly what knockout football demands, and that is the one thing that Portugal didn’t have to show for. 

And with that, Cristiano Ronaldo’s dreams of having a parade in the streets of Lisbon have ended. Since reaching the semifinals in 2006, Portugal exited in the Round of 16 twice, the group stage once and the quarterfinals once. This was always going to be his last chance.

The greatest striker of this generation, and as some might say of all time, entered this World Cup chasing the only major trophy missing from his remarkable international career with Portugal. 

He became the first player to score in 6 different World Cups, adding another record to his name. Before facing Spain, Cristiano Ronaldo said he would leave with a clear conscience because he has given everything he has for his country.