Cristiano Ronaldo's eight-game World Cup knockout goal drought: A statistical analysis
By
Mark Doyle
Summary
Cristiano Ronaldo has played eight World Cup knockout stage matches without scoring a single goal, a stark contrast to his prolific record in other competitions. The article examines this statistical anomaly as Portugal prepares for a match against Croatia, tracing Ronaldo's World Cup history from his first tournament in 2006 through to 2022, and analyzing the factors behind his inability to find the net when it matters most on the global stage.
Source
Twitter / XCristiano Ronaldo's eight-game World Cup knockout goal drought: A statistical analysisgoal.comKey quotes
· 3 pulledRonaldo made history at his first World Cup, in 2006, by becoming Portugal's youngest-ever goal-scorer on the game's grandest stage when he converted a penalty in the closing stages of a 2-0 win over Group D rivals Iran on matchday two.
It was his only strike of the tournament, though.
Ronaldo was just 21 at the time and still a fleet-footed winger rather than a prolific centre-forward, so the fact that he didn't score in four knockout games as Portugal finished fourth wasn't a major talking point.
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