As Cristiano Ronaldo redeemed himself against Hungary, Portugal proved they are a one-man army

We live in Messi's universe. The diminutive Argentine shapes football, sculpting and moulding the global game with regal zest, exalting all the talents of a 21st-century super-athlete, playing football the modern way – with precision at pace, often mind-boggling and searing.

On the other side of the Atlantic, Messi, supposedly the bane of Cristiano Ronaldo’s life, has excelled at the centenary Copa America, guiding Argentina to the final and netting plenty of goals. Many of Messi’s fine traits apply to the Portuguese. He is the personification of professionalism, ever striving for self-improvement. Ronaldo’s mantra is betterment.

At the end of the club season, CR7 won La Undecima, Real Madrid’s 11th Champions League title. He struggled his way through 120 grueling minutes against Atletico Madrid. Eventually, he scored the winning penalty in the shootout, celebrating with his overbearing Chippendale-routine.

Struggles in France

In France, Ronaldo’s form has oscillated between the mediocre and outright bad, if not pathetic: the dash out of his legs, the precision gone from his execution. Before Portugal's final group game against Hungary, Ronaldo had been listless, an uncanny moodiness encircling his persona. The Portuguese had been goalless, angry and frustrated, not in the least against Iceland, who neutralised him easily, even without double-marking him.

Iceland snatched a point against their illustrious opponents courtesy of a fine strike in the 50th minute from Birkir Bjarnason. “I thought they’d won the Euros the way they celebrated at the end, it was unbelievable,” complained Ronaldo. His statement was bewilderingly snobbish, desecrating his own humble isle roots from Madeira. The Icelandic grinta and grind were a reminder of how dedication can propel one to the top, but Ronaldo had forgotten the many hours he spent on the training pitch and in the gym on his own path to sporting excellence.

Against Austria, the Portuguese captain hit a nadir, smacking a penalty against the right-hand post in his record 127th cap, one more than the mercurial Luis Figo. Portugal failed to score against the Austrians, a shadow of the 1934 Wunderteam. The pressure mounted on Ronaldo, as talks of his demise and ineffectiveness swelled.

Finding redemption

Then, in Portugal’s do-or-die final group game against the rigid Hungarians, he exploded. Ronaldo’s atonement was a reminder of his frightening skills. More so, he was the spine of a jittery Portugal, who did just enough against a surprisingly lively Hungary coached by Bernd Storck.

The game began at a gallop, but Ronaldo didn’t. He had looked despondent in training and his waning form materialised in the opening stages of the game. His first free-kicks were simply poor. His outraged reaction when Nani didn’t cross a ball from the left revealed a ponderous state of mind.

Ronaldo also suffered from Adam Lang’s tight man-marking, but in the 42nd minute he slid a through-ball to Nani, who composedly finished from inside the box. In that simple moment of cerebral vision and calmness, Ronaldo found redemption. He suddenly inspired and galvanised his team.

At the age of 31, Ronaldo, remains instrumental to Portugal’s fortunes. At both Real Madrid and Portugal, he is slowly shifting away from his wing-play transitioning into becoming a striker, a penalty-box predator. He is not a natural No 9 and won’t ever be, but his goalscoring potential and nous have always been a key feature of his game. This season, Ronaldo scored 51 goals for Madrid.

He got two versus Hungary. Ronaldo slightly improvised inside the six-yard box to flick the ball beyond Kiraly in astounding fashion after a curly cross from Joao Mario. Cue Ronaldo’s chest-puffing celebration. His second goal and Portugal’s equaliser for 3-3 highlighted his remarkable improvement to head the ball with great direction. Yet again, he steered the ball easily past a flapping Hungarian goalkeeper.

However, Ronaldo's major contribution was carrying – at times, dragging – a mediocre Portuguese outfit throughout the match and ensuring progress to the knockout phase. His predicament is akin to Zlatan Ibrahimovic at Sweden, who on Wednesday retired from the international game. He is a superb, once-in-a-generation, and possibly once-in-a-country, player, caught in an absurd squad of underachieving and limited players.

Ronaldo’s first two group games were disappointing, but so was the scrutiny thereafter. CR7’s lone supremacy in Portugal prevailed against Hungary.