Cristiano Ronaldo was the first man to come down from the tunnel after Portugal’s emphatic World Cup round of 16 victory over Switzerland.
The 37-year-old was dropped from the starting XI by manager Fernando Santos, the first time he hasn’t started a major tournament game since 2008.
His replacement Goncalo Ramos then scored a brilliant hat-trick en route to a 6-1 win.
The fans were waiting for Ronaldo to be signed and finally got their wish as he played the last 17 minutes.
Portugal had already scored five by then and their introduction seemed more intended to appease the crowd.
The change in mood of the game when the five-time Ballon d’Or winner came on in the 73rd minute was evident.
talkSPORT co-commentator for the game, England legend Stuart Pearce, said: “This game turned into a testimonial when it happened. The crowd was yelling at him to come… but that’s not what the World Cup is about.
Once the match was over, Ronaldo walked over to the fans and cheered.
However, he was the first man down the tunnel while all of his teammates remained on the pitch to celebrate some more.
On his decision to drop Ronaldo, Santos said after the match: “Cristiano and Ramos are different players. There is no problem with the captain of the national team.
“We have been friends for many years. He gave the example of a captain.
In the next round, Portugal take on Morocco and Santos has a huge decision on whether to drop Ronaldo again and stick with his hat-trick hero Ramos.
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