Hallgrimsson on Ronaldo that everyone was talking about after the dramatic red card on Cristiano Ronaldo at the defeat of Portugal against the Republic of Ireland in the qualifier to the World Cup. What should have turned out to be an enjoyable resumption of the role of the city of Dublin by the Portuguese captain has since resulted in controversy, skirmishes between the two sides and the war of words that has seen the temper of Ronaldo called into a lot of question as well as the fitness of the player to appear at the World Cup. It became one of the most dramatic in the long history of Ronaldo playing internationally, and Hallgrimsson on Ronaldo has been the ideal narrative chip to a game that had all the elements goals, tension, VAR recent events and managerial brain games.
Ronaldo had come smiling to Dublin and when asked about it, he said that he would make a good boy, perhaps as he had a feeling of the jeers he was going to get at the hands of the crowd in Ireland. To begin with, Ireland shocked the stadium as Troy Parrott hit twice during the first half, making there 2-0 in a situation where Ronaldo was left playing a more enraged role. The situation was boiled down to the last drop directly after the hour mark when Ronaldo and the Irish defender, Dara O’Shea, fought to occupy the penalty area. Cameras had filmed Ronaldo seemingly stabbing O’Shea in the back with his elbow as a cross was headed towards her. O’Shea fell to the ground and the Irish players ran around the referee and the spectators went crazy.
Referee Glenn Nyberg first gave Ronaldo a yellow card. But following the recommendation of the VAR to look into the footage on the pitch-side monitor, all that changed. Going back to pitch, Nyberg came up with a straight red and Ronaldo was shocked. The 40 year old superstar instead went away applauding sarcastically to the crowd of the Irish supporters and walked to the head of the Republic of Ireland, Heimir Hallgrimsson in a rapid exchange of hot words and eventually walked out. It was a theatrical moment, and this preconditioned the quote that was to take its headlin Hallgrimsson about Ronaldo.
Given the opportunity to comment on the exchange, Hallgrimsson gave the line that immediately went viral in the social media “Perhaps I got inside the head of Ronaldo. The Irish manager had claimed before that Ronaldo had bribed the referee in the previous victory of Portugal over Ireland in October when the Portuguese captain failed to score a penalty, and still appeared to influence the referee. That comment evidently became tension during this match and even Ronaldo himself made an allegation at Hallgrimsson having mind games during his pre-match press conference.
Nevertheless, Hallgrimsson denied that his statements were relevant to the red card. In his opinion, it was Ronaldo himself who was guilty of rashness. The Irish boss added that the two even had what he termed as a handshake, minor joke even after the confrontation on the sidelines. Nevertheless, Hallgrimsson about Ronaldo remained the focal point of the night because he furthered his argument that the Portugal captain must have lost his temper under pressure.
A very contrasting view was given by the manager of Portugal, Roberto Martinez who came out in a strong defense of his captain. Martinez also reminded reporters that Ronaldo had not been sent off on 226 occasions in his Portuguese matches of which he was named and his disciplinary record was to be credited. He claimed that the contact appeared not as good on the camera image as it was in reality and that Ronaldo had been pushed, held and pulled in the box almost an hour. According to the eyes of Martinez, O’Shea ducked too much and the referee might have been compromised by some influences, at least after Hallgrimsson expressed what Ronaldo could do to referee beforehand. Another twist to an existing over the top plot was the comparison between Hallgrimsson and Ronaldo and Martinez and Ronaldo.
Lastly, there is the focus on what the red card entails. It is indubitably clear that Ronaldo will be suspended in the next qualifier of Portugal against Armenia. Nevertheless, more worrisome is the duration of the ban this may become. Violent behavior will automatically result in a minimum of three game suspension according to FIFA regulations and therefore Ronaldo might miss the first matches of possibly his only world cup appearance assuming that Portugal will be automatically qualified. In case Portugal finds itself in the play-offs, then he serves the suspension in the play-offs. The incident will be looked into by a disciplinary committee and Hallgrimsson on Ronaldo will most probably feature in the narrative they explore which they will or will not be admitting to.
What was to be a nostalgic trip back to a city where Ronaldo had made his initial Real Madrid appearance turned out to be a love-filled memory one to remember. He had come into Dublin with a smiling face, but left in the storm of debate, criticism and doubtful results. And a single line, Hallgrimsson on Ronaldo, has caused the Ireland manager to guarantee an echo of the final whistle over the ensuing debate.
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