Scoopfeeds — Intelligent news, curated.
Portugal tuning out ‘noise’ as Ronaldo criticism mounts at World Cup: Dias
pakistan

Portugal tuning out ‘noise’ as Ronaldo criticism mounts at World Cup: Dias

ARY News · Jun 19, 2026, 8:15 PM

Key takeaways

  • Congo, playing in their first World Cup for 52 years, frustrated Portugal in a 1-1 draw that left the European side with just one shot on target despite completing 740 passes, prompting a barrage of criticism.
  • Ronaldo, in particular, found himself in the firing line as the 41-year-old’s goal drought at major tournaments extended to 10 games stretching back ⁠to the 2022 World Cup, despite being the all-time top scorer.
  • “The criticism is not significant for us, it’s noise and part of the competition … It’s all noise,” Dias told reporters at Portugal’s training camp.

Why this matters: local context for readers following news across Pakistan and the region.

Add ARY News on Google AAResize The Portugal squad are shutting out criticism of the team and captain Cristiano Ronaldo following an underwhelming draw in their World Cup opener against Democratic Republic of Congo, defender Ruben Dias said on Friday.

Congo, playing in their first World Cup for 52 years, frustrated Portugal in a 1-1 draw that left the European side with just one shot on target despite completing 740 passes, prompting a barrage of criticism.

Ronaldo, in particular, found himself in the firing line as the 41-year-old’s goal drought at major tournaments extended to 10 games stretching back ⁠to the 2022 World Cup, despite being the all-time top scorer.

Article preview — originally published by ARY News. Full story at the source.
Read full story on ARY News → More top stories
Aggregated and edited by the Scoop newsroom. We surface news from ARY News alongside other reporting so you can compare coverage in one place. Editorial policy · Corrections · About Scoop