đšThierry Henry on Portugalâs elimination from the FIFA World Cup:
đŁïž âIâm going to say something that a lot of Portuguese supporters probably donât want to hear.
This Portugal team has massively underperformed.
Not because they lacked talent, but because too many of their biggest players never reached the level everyone expected.
Bruno Fernandes has been dreadful by his own standards throughout this World Cup. The creativity, the leadership, the decisive moments weâve seen for years simply werenât there. Then you look at Vitinha and JoĂŁo Nevesâfresh from winning the Champions League with PSG. Two midfielders who dominated Europe. Yet in this tournament, theyâve been almost invisible. Missing in action when Portugal needed control, composure and personality.
And then there is Cristiano Ronaldo.
People will blame him because thatâs the easy thing to do.
I wonât.
Because if you decide to start Cristiano, then you have to build situations that suit him. Instead, Portugal kept circulating possession without purpose. They had one of the greatest penalty-box finishers football has ever seen, yet they hardly gave him the service he lives on. Thatâs not on Ronaldo. Thatâs on the team around him.
Spain deserve enormous credit.
They played with a clear identity from the first minute until the last. Every player knew his role. Every movement had purpose. Portugal, on the other hand, looked like eleven talented footballers trying to solve the game individually rather than collectively.
Thatâs why Spain are still in this World Cup.
And thatâs why Portugal are going home.
Not because they had worse playersâŠ
But because they never played like a better team.â