Portugal needs Cristiano Ronaldo to win the 2022 World Cup

Portugal won a big win over Switzerland without a hand from soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. Even so, Michel Salgado believes that Portugal still needs Ronaldo to win the 2022 World Cup.

Fernando Santos made a big decision when Portugal faced Switzerland in the last 16 of the 2022 World Cup on Wednesday (7/12/2022). He backed up Cristiano Ronaldo.

This bold decision proved to be the right one. Bruno Fernandes and colleagues beat Switzerland with a landslide score of 6-1.

Goncalo Ramos, the young striker who is believed to replace Ronaldo's role, appeared extraordinary. The Benfica player had a hat trick in this match.

Salgado explained that every player will experience a drop in performance toward the end of his career. However, Salgado believes that Ronaldo still wants to prove to everyone that he is not finished yet.

"We all need to deal with change; this is life, and he is constantly under pressure. But he has to accept it; we all experience it; at one point we are very important in our careers, and at some point there are changes," Salgado told Stats Perform.

"You can see that other people are coming, that they can play without you, and you realize that they are playing without you and winning without you. But, of course, Cristiano means a lot to football, and we will miss him."

"I know him well, and he would not put his head down. He would still think today that he would score the World Cup winner and that Portugal would be champions with him, and no one would convince him otherwise."

Portugal still needs Ronaldo.

Backing up Ronaldo might be the best choice for Portugal. However, Salgado thinks Ronaldo can still play an important role for his team in Qatar.

"I think we should leave him alone; Portugal obviously won with him; the coach's alternative of using another player than him worked," he added.

"He has the personality to find solutions without Ronaldo, but if I am a manager, and I believe Fernando [Santos] knows it, you need to rely on Ronaldo if you want to win this World Cup. That's clear."

"What is needed is for Ronaldo to mentally find his place and to stay focused on the national team, no matter what. But it was definitely a moment of change for him."