Cristiano Ronaldo scored yet another hat-trick, getting his 100th goal in the Champions League and powering Real Madrid into the semi-finals for a seventh consecutive season, after a 4-2 win over Bayern Munich set up a 6-3 aggregate victory.
It was a phenomenal effort from the Fifa Player of the Year, but he was still jeered by the Real Madrid home crowd at Santiago Bernabeu after a couple of misfiring shots early on. Ronaldo proved to be the difference in the end, and the Portuguese striker didn’t let go of the opportunity to call out the demanding fans after the match.
“I want them to stop booing me because I always give my best, and even when I don’t score I try to help Real Madrid.” Ronaldo told Spanish TV station Antena 3. “I’m not asking them to name streets after me, the only thing I ask is that they don’t boo me here,” he added.
One can imagine Ronaldo’s plight, being booed by his home crowd despite being the standout performer for the La Liga table toppers and scoring a brace in Munich that had given his team a crucial 2-1 lead in the first leg.
On Tuesday, Ronaldo netted a header after Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring for Bayern. Sergio Ramos’ own goal then levelled the scores on aggregate, before Ronaldo completed his hat-trick in extra time.
Although his last two goals were contentious, seen to be scored from offside positions, Ronaldo’s fifth goal of the tie made him the first player to reach 100 goals in the Champions League. The four-times World Player of the Year put his finger to his lips to the supporters who had booed him earlier.
Manager Zinedine Zidane also weighed in on the mattre, saying that Real players should get used to the pressure from the home crowd. “Perhaps the fans won’t boo him anymore, but this is the Bernabeu and it can happen from time to time and he knows that,” said the former Real player.
“The only thing he did was to stay calm and he proved himself on the pitch. There are few players that are always there in the key moments, and the fans will be grateful for what Cristiano has done here.
“He always knows that when there’s an important occasion, he’s going to be there and he showed it again tonight. What he did is outside any sort of category. There are few players who can do what Ronaldo has done and we all know that,” Zidane was quoted as saying.
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