40-year-old Ronaldo shows disrespect for his age with spitting and an elbow strike, resulting in a straight red card; Portugal loses 0-2 and misses early qualification.

At 03:45 on November 14th Beijing time, during the 5th round of the European World Cup qualifiers Group F, Portugal played away against Ireland; a victory would guarantee Portugal’s early qualification for the 2026 World Cup.

In the first half, Parrott scored two goals, O’Brien struck the post, and Portugal was down 0-2 at halftime; in the second half, Vitinha missed a good opportunity, Ronaldo spat and then delivered a retaliatory elbow, earning a straight red card and reducing Portugal to ten players.

In the end, Portugal lost 0-2 away to Ireland and failed to qualify early. In the standings, Portugal leads with 10 points, while Ireland sits third with 7 points.

For Ireland vs Portugal, Hadgrimsson deployed a 3-4-2-1 formation, with a starting lineup valued at €140 million and an average age of 26.9 years; on Portugal’s side,Martinez set up a 4-3-3 formation, with 40-year-old Ronaldo still starting upfront, flanked by Felix and Bernardo Silva; Vitinha, Ruben Neves, and João Neves formed the midfield trio, Dalot, Inacio, Ruben Dias, and Cancelo made up the back four, and Costa was in goal. The starting lineup’s value was €460 million with an average age of 27.8 years..

In this match,Portugal dominated possession away with 77%, taking 27 shots but only 5 on target; Ireland had 14 shots with 3 on target, scoring 2 goals.Their efficiency was very high. Ronaldo truly showed disrespect for his age this game, spitting and retaliating with an elbow that led to a red card, directly causing Portugal’s 0-2 defeat and missing early qualification. After the match, Ronaldo received a rating of 6.4, the lowest among Portugal players. Fans joked that the World Cup is no longer Ronaldo’s dream, and when he plays qualifiers, he definitely has emotions.

Portugal’s next headline will likely be Ronaldo’s suspension, while the team wins and qualifies for the 2026 World Cup. Perhaps the older Ronaldo plays, the less his historical status matters. Do you agree?