According to Sky Sports, Ronaldo played his last FIFA World Cup match after Portugal's loss to Spain. The 41-year-old was in tears at the final whistle, his lifelong dream of chasing football's highest honor completely shattered. Ronaldo will likely be recognized as the strongest player never to have won this top international honor.

Reports indicate that Ronaldo stated he left the field with a clear conscience after Portugal's FIFA World Cup exit. Ronaldo's contribution to the sport of football is undeniable; he is one of the greatest players to have ever graced the pitch.

Therefore, when the Portuguese captain became emotional and cried after his last FIFA World Cup, it symbolized the official end of an era. This was an iconic moment – the final farewell of a true football legend from the largest international tournament.

This was Ronaldo's sixth and final FIFA World Cup, where he scored a cumulative 11 goals, holding the historical record for scoring in the most FIFA World Cups.

However, at least judging by his performance in this tournament, he was indeed no longer at his peak. The scenes on the field before his emotional tears at the final whistle all suggest that Ronaldo and the Portuguese national team should embark on new journeys.

Against Spain, Portugal played conservatively, only conceding a goal in injury time, but the team's attack consistently lacked creativity.

This was despite having this season's Premier League's best player, Bruno Fernandes, and two-time Champions League winners João Neves and Vitinha in midfield.

In defense, Rúben Dias and Nuno Mendes provided ample physicality. João Cancelo, Bernardo Silva, Pedro Neto, Rafael Leão, Nunes, Diogo Dalot, and others are all regular starters for top European clubs.

Recalling Ronaldo's stunning ball control and dribbling skills during his time at Manchester United in the Premier League. It's clear that Ronaldo's presence was precisely the root cause of Portugal's lack of creativity. No one expected the five-time Ballon d'Or winner to maintain peak performance this summer, but match data sufficiently proves that Ronaldo not only failed to help but actually hindered the team in this match.

The player once considered the world's top attacker failed to complete a single dribble in all 5 of his FIFA World Cup matches. Even the Cape Verdean goalkeeper, also over 40, completed one dribble.

This statistic summarizes his performance throughout the tournament: Ronaldo completely lacked the ability to create attacking opportunities. He took 17 shots in the tournament and only provided his teammates with one opportunity, in the 75th minute against Spain, passing to Vitinha, whose shot was ultimately blocked.

Across five matches, his expected assist value was only 0.01, a figure that sufficiently demonstrates that the pace of top-tier football no longer suits Ronaldo.

Mbappe, Messi, Haaland, and Kane are also known for scoring, and some of them may also be playing in their last FIFA World Cup, but they can still create scoring chances for their teammates.

The playing style of Ronaldo is completely different from theirs, yet these four are still with their respective teams in the FIFA World Cup, while Portugal has returned home.

There were also glimpses of his peak period during the tournament. After the 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan, Ronaldo shouted "I'm back" to the cameras, but his brace was merely a fleeting moment in this tournament.

That Ronaldo managed to score two goals was only due to the opponent's leaky defense. Among all 48 participating teams in the group stage, only Iraq and Tunisia conceded more goals than Uzbekistan, who were making their FIFA World Cup debut.

The penalty against Croatia was his first goal in a FIFA World Cup knockout stage in his career, but during a tense extra time with a penalty shootout looming, Roberto Martinez still substituted him. In his prime, such a substitution would have been unthinkable.

Now, Portugal has an opportunity for generational change. Gonçalo Ramos's transfer to AC Milan during the FIFA World Cup broke the club's historical transfer fee record, and he will also take on a heavy responsibility in the national team, becoming the new owner of Portugal's number nine shirt after Ronaldo.

Undoubtedly, Ronaldo's influence will still loom over this national team. By the 2028 European Championship, public attention will revolve around Portugal's first major tournament without Ronaldo.

Whether Gonçalo Ramos or other players take over Ronaldo's central striker position, they will constantly be compared to this legend for years to come. After all, Ronaldo was the captain of the Portuguese team that won the 2016 European Championship.

Ronaldo's performance in this FIFA World Cup will not define his entire career, but this experience will be repeatedly brought up by outsiders. He never managed to reach the FIFA World Cup semi-finals, while Messi won the tournament, and this point will be used by many to judge him when comparing the two, which is also the most enduring debate in modern football.

While Ronaldo is not the only epoch-making star in modern football who failed to lead his country to a FIFA World Cup victory, he will likely be recognized as the strongest player never to have won this top international honor.

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