Fernandes urges Ronaldo critics to keep it up

Fernandes urges Ronaldo critics to keep it up

Bruno Fernandes said he hopes there will be more criticism of Cristiano Ronaldo because it gets the best out of the Portugal striker.

Ronaldo became the first player to score in five World Cups with a penalty in the 3-2 win in their World Cup opener against Ghana on Thursday.

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It capped a week which has seen him become a free agent after his contract at Manchester United was terminated in the wake of his interview with Piers Morgan and Fernandes believes it proves the 37-year-old thrives when he’s under pressure.

“I think he likes to work under that criticism from everyone, so I pray all of you to keep doing that because he gets the best of himself when you guys do that,” Fernandes said. “It was a dream come true to play with him in the national team and in the club also, and that is something amazing.

“I still share the space with him in the national team and the main thing for me is that Portugal does the best we can in the tournament because if we do it, Cristiano will be happy, I will be happy and everyone in Portugal will be happy for us.”