In the first round of the World Cup group stage match on June 18th Beijing time, the highly favored Portuguese team was unexpectedly held to a 1-1 draw by the Democratic Republic of Congo, missing out on an opening win.

Following the match, many fans expressed dissatisfaction with Portugal’s display, venting their frustration at Bruno Fernandes. The Manchester United midfielder, who has had an impressive season, saw his social media comment sections flooded with accusations of being too selfish and failing to pass the ball to Ronaldo, leaving the latter isolated during the game.

Angry netizens wrote: “Play normally like you do at Manchester United. You seemed to think all game that if Ronaldo scores, you’ll lose attention”; “You see everyone on the field except him. You’re all in the same boat—win together, lose together. Stop being selfish.”

“Pass the ball to Ronaldo!”; “Help Ronaldo, give him an assist, that’s the way to go, Bruno!”; “You’re way too selfish with Ronaldo, man!”; “You just don’t want to see Ronaldo shine at the World Cup!”; “Are you crazy? What the heck! Pass the ball to the forward!”

According to a report from Portuguese media *A Bola*, a blogger directly criticized Fernandes’ performance in a post, and Ronaldo’s sister, Katia, unashamedly liked that social media post.

The blogger wrote: “Bruno (B Fee) is a completely different person wearing the national team jersey! When Portugal needed a leader most, he disappeared from the game and shifted responsibility onto others. High talent, high exposure, but where is the decisiveness in crucial moments? Fans expect a superstar who rises under pressure, not someone who goes invisible when the game gets tense.”

In this match, both Fernandes and Ronaldo played the full 90 minutes. Fernandes had 2 shots (0 on target), 1 key pass, and 3 tackles, earning a team-high second-best rating of 7.8. Meanwhile, Ronaldo had 3 shots (0 on target) and received a全场 lowest score of 6.1.