Cristiano Ronaldo needs his Portugal teammates to step up at Euros

Posted Tuesday, June 07, 2016 by ESPN

It's one of those nights that stays with you and always will. The hat trick that Cristiano Ronaldo scored at Solna's Friends Arena in November 2013, to sweep a jittery Portugal to the World Cup at Sweden's expense, was more than just a great performance. It was the fullest expression of sheer power and ironclad will that you can imagine. On that night, when Portugal came under pressure from a Zlatan Ibrahimovic-led home team, Ronaldo would not be denied.

Even those who wouldn't exactly describe themselves as fans doffed their caps. The Swedish supporters in the stadium, who spent much of the game booing Ronaldo's every touch and baiting him with chants of "Messi, Messi," applauded him. So did Ibrahimovic. Sebastian Larsson, who had been critical of Ronaldo's "tricks" in the run-up to the match, stood in the post-match mixed zone acknowledging Ronaldo's majesty through (almost literally) gritted teeth.

It was the reaction of the rest of the Portugal squad to Ronaldo's feat, however, which was especially telling. Miguel Veloso described him as "a machine" after the game, while Hugo Almeida marvelled that "he's not from this planet."

Ronaldo is a totem for Portugal, as he should be, and demands the very best from those around him. Too often of late, however, his contemporaries have shrunk in his giant shadow rather than being galvanised by his brilliance.

He can accomplish many things, but Ronaldo can't carry Portugal to a major tournament victory on his own. The question heading into Euro 2016: Does CR7 have a strong enough supporting cast to propel Portugal to glory?

History has shown that when Ronaldo isn't at his best, his teammates don't pick up enough slack.

This was especially true at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Ronaldo, normally such a Herculean figure, was a shadow of his best self. In fact, he was a shell -- Ronaldo in name, but not so much in nature, labouring in training even before the 4-0 hammering by Germany in the opening match in Salvador made it stark just how short of par Portugal were.

Cristiano Ronaldo needs his Portugal teammates to step up at Euros

With the rare occasion in which Portugal's captain required his teammates to hold him up, rather than the other way around, they failed miserably to do so. On paper, they should have been more able to pick up the slack. Ronaldo could survey the pitch and see Champions League winners in Pepe, Fabio Coentrao and Nani around him, and talent with armfuls of league titles between them in Joao Moutinho, Bruno Alves and Raul Meireles there too.

Yet they all fell short. Ronaldo's club colleague Pepe was red-carded before half-time in Salvador, and Coentrao -- so often the perfect foil for Portugal's star on the left-hand side -- exited in the second half with an injury that finished his tournament. The sparky and inventive Moutinho, after a physically draining first season in France with Monaco, looked exhausted.

At the Euros, which start on June 10, Fernando Santos will hope things are different. The coach who replaced Paulo Bento after one game of the qualifying campaign has an unusual recipe in aiming for success, having brought back some oldies from exile (led by Ricardo Carvalho, the eldest outfield player at 38) and yet having simultaneously begun to integrate some of the nation's highly promising youngsters into the senior group, led by 18-year-old Renato Sanches, recently signed by Bayern Munich.

The experience part of the equation will be especially apparent in defence if, as expected, Santos goes into the Euro opener against Iceland at Saint Etienne with a back four of Vierinha (who's 30), Pepe (33), Carvalho (38) and Eliseu (32). However, we should expect a freshness, and real mobility, in front of them in what is likely to be a 4-4-2 or slight variation thereof. Moutinho will be ably supported by Porto's colossal midfield holder Danilo, and probably the Sporting pair of Joao Mario and Adrien Silva, or Valencia's versatile playmaker Andre Gomes.

The initial advantage in terms of supporting Ronaldo is a tactical one. Taking the qualifying campaign as a guide, nobody should expect dazzling football. Portugal scored 11 times in 8 qualifiers, and some of the games (notably the vital away win in Albania, which made up for the opening game defeat against the same opposition) were pretty dire as spectacles.

Yet a solid and largely deep-lying defence, with Danilo ably dropping back to form a three when the full-backs push on, provides a foundation upon which to build.

Portugal's shape will also require less running from Ronaldo than a 4-3-3, which can only be a good thing when you bear in mind the condition he looked to be in during the Champions League final this past May.

The other positive aspect of Santos' plan is that there are new faces involved, particularly in midfield. You sense in the likes of Joao Mario and Adrien Silva a greater confidence to be themselves -- they have both been excellent for Sporting this season -- as enterprising players who can shuttle the ball up the pitch as quickly as Ronaldo needs it. Players who, just as importantly, feel like they belong in his company.

Crucially, they appear ready to maintain a system not totally reliant on the skipper. "Everybody recognises that Cristiano is a fundamental piece of this team and so important," said Santos after the recent friendly win over Norway, which Ronaldo missed. "Now Portugal have to create a situation in which we can -- in a case where Cristiano can't [help] -- continue to believe we can win, and that's what we're trying to do."

Four years ago, in the agonising Euro semifinal defeat to Spain, Ronaldo never had the chance for his crowning moment in the shootout. Moutinho and Bruno Alves missed, and taker number five never got his turn. He put that right in the Champions League final with the right back-up.

Ronaldo, and Portugal, will hope that Santos' new blend will give him the right platform this time.