Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo, the hat-trick hero in a thrilling 3-3 draw with Spain in a Group B World Cup clash in Sochi on Friday night, said that his extraordinary achievement was the “work of many years”.
Playing in his fourth World Cup, the 33-year-old Real Madrid striker became the oldest player to score a hat-trick at the tournament as he opened and closed the scoring.
“It’s the work of many years, I’ve always believed in myself,” he said after the match. “I’m very happy, it’s my first hat-trick at a World Cup,”
Two of Ronaldo’s goals came from set pieces – a penalty for the opener and a wonderful 88th-minute free-kick for the third – while the second was a gift from Spanish keeper David De Gea who allowed a tame shot to trickle through his hands.
Despite being down 3-2 with just minutes left, Ronaldo said he and his team-mates never gave up.
“We never lose face in a game until the final,” he said. “Spain had chances, but the result was good for us.
“We’ve drawn with one of the favourites to win the World Cup. We’re happy because we’ve managed a draw in the end.”
The Portugal captain was quick to point out that the World Cup has a long way to go but he firmly believes that his country cannot be ruled out of lifting the Jules Rimet trophy on July 15 in Moscow.
“You have to give the team credit, we had faith and made sacrifices,” he said. “The World Cup has just started, the first objective is to get through the group stage and then we’ll see.
“We’re candidates [to win the World Cup], but not favourites.”
Portugal now face a heartbroken Morocco at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow next Wednesday, who need a victory to stay in the race for the knockout stages after their last-gasp defeat to Iran.