Rooney Critiques Fernandes Over Ronaldo's Treatment

Wayne Rooney, the former England international, criticized Bruno Fernandes and other players from the Portugal National Team regarding their treatment of Cristiano Ronaldo during the FIFA World Cup. Rooney pointed out that Ronaldo, at 41 years old, performs best when he receives the ball inside the penalty area.

He specifically called out Fernandes for not capitalizing on Ronaldo's strengths, noting that the Portuguese players tended to pass the ball around rather than delivering crosses into the opponent's box. Rooney emphasized that Fernandes and others did not utilize Ronaldo effectively, which limited their scoring opportunities.

He remarked that Ronaldo is no longer capable of scoring from 30 yards out and that the team needed to leverage his presence during set pieces. The criticism follows Portugal's elimination from the tournament, with Spain's Mikel Merino scoring a decisive goal in the 91st minute to send Portugal home.