Nadezhda Strelets on Ronaldo's farewell to the national team: 'He endured the most inadequate hate and did not break'

Farewell to the national team and the players' reactions

Cristiano Ronaldo announced the end of his career with the Portugal national team after 23 years of playing, during which he made 234 appearances and scored 146 goals. In his statement, he said it was time to pass the number seven shirt on to the next generation. This is reported by Life.ru.

Strelets: greatness lies in resilience to criticism

Journalist Nadezhda Strelets, in her post, drew attention to the reactions of current and former players. According to her, when CR7's farewell post was published, she saw no comments under it from current players of the Portugal national team, whereas Vinicius Junior wrote to the Portuguese star 'Forever number one,' and Neymar limited himself to the word 'Legend.' Later, other reactions from footballers, including national team players, appeared under the post. This is reported by Life.ru.

A parallel between Ronaldo and Vinicius

Vinicius's short phrase prompted Strelets to draw a parallel between the two stars of Real Madrid: in her view, both Ronaldo and Vinicius, at different stages of their careers, faced enormous public pressure and harsh criticism. The journalist sees CR7's distinguishing feature in the fact that he managed to exist in such an atmosphere for years, continuing to set records and remain one of the world's leading footballers. 'Cris's greatness lies not just in the fact that he set all the world records, but in the fact that he endured the most inadequate hate in the world and did not break,' Strelets wrote. She also voiced support for Vinicius, who in recent years has regularly faced abuse from fans and the media, and expressed hope that the Brazilian will cope with what is happening. The post ended with anticipation of one more Ronaldo achievement — his thousandth official goal.