Figo: Ronaldo Is A Legend, But Portugal Needs More Than One Man”

Luis Figo Defends Cristiano Ronaldo But Questions His Leadership After Joao Neves + Bruno Fernandes Drama

Luis Figo has weighed in on the controversy surrounding Joao Neves’ “ordinary player” comment and Bruno Fernandes liking an Instagram post that criticized Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Portuguese legend started by showing respect to his former teammate. “First of all I respect Cristiano Ronaldo for all he’s done for our country all these years. He’s a Portuguese legend and loved by everyone,” Figo said.

But the former Real Madrid and Barcelona star then shifted to leadership. Figo questioned Ronaldo’s ability to unite the Portugal dressing room at 40 years old.

He recalled Euro 2004, when Ronaldo was just the youngest player in the squad. “Everyone treated him with love and respect despite being older than him. We saw his abilities on the pitch, we gave him passes to do the dirty job,” Figo revealed.

Fast forward to today, and Figo believes Ronaldo’s selfishness is hurting the team. He pointed to Portugal’s match against DR Congo as an example. “Bruno Fernandes was in a better position to score. He was calling for him to pass the ball but he shot instead and failed to convert,” he said.

Figo dismissed claims that Bruno Fernandes is dividing the squad. Instead, he placed responsibility on Ronaldo as the senior man. “Cristiano Ronaldo as the oldest player needs to unite the dressing room with Roberto Martinez,” he argued.

The 2000 Ballon d’Or winner then compared Portugal’s situation to Argentina. For Figo, Lionel Messi sets the standard for leadership. “You will see all the players treating Lionel Messi with respect including the coaches. This isn’t because he won 8 Ballon d’Ors, no! He’s down to earth. He knows how to keep his teammates happy on and off the pitch,” he explained.

“Everyone in the Argentina team can sacrifice anything to see him happy because he treats them like family and not strangers. Cristiano Ronaldo should learn from that. You can have the talent but character is very important in every field of life.”

Figo’s comments add fuel to a growing debate in Portugal about Ronaldo’s role as captain and whether his individual mindset still fits this young national team.