With a sore gesture, head down and leaning on a teammate, Cristiano Ronaldo (37) was heading towards the changing room tunnel at Goodinson Park after his team, Manchester United, lost 1-0 against Everton.
As happens at the end of the matches, a group of mobile fans tried to take photos and videos of their idols with their mobile phones.
Among them,
a 14-year-old boy with special abilities named Jake Harding who Cristiano Ronaldo hit hard in the hand with which he was holding the phone
before entering the locker room tunnel.
A gesture of helplessness from CR7
that shows how the Portuguese is going through what he himself has described as "difficult moments" marked by injuries, poor sports performance and poor results for his team.
A situation that contrasts with the happiness and the very high quotas of fame that his wife, Georgina (28) is reaching.
She is doing better than ever.
To him, quite the opposite.
The incident involving Cristiano Ronaldo was immediately answered by a loud boo from the fans who witnessed the luso's slap.
A clamor that in a matter of minutes jumped to social networks and sports gatherings around the world
pointing out that it responds to the "arrogant" behavior that the player is blamed for
since his time at Real Madrid.
What would have been an unpleasant experience for any kid, has become an even more complicated event for the young Harding.
Some facts that
his mother has not hesitated to call "aggression
".
A description with which
the British authorities also agree
, who have launched an investigation into the incident that resulted in Jake's bruised hand and the screen of his mobile phone shattered, according to his mother.
Likewise, the mother explained that the boy is very affected because he suffers from dyspraxia -a disorder that affects coordination- and
autism, a pathology that "makes him unable to digest things in the same way as someone without disabilities"
.
In addition, unfortunately for the boy, it was the first game he attended and this has caused him to become afraid of soccer fields.
Minutes after the incident, Cristiano Ronaldo tried to quell the avalanche of criticism on social networks by posting an apology accompanied by a photo on Instagram.
"
It has never been easy to deal with emotions in difficult times
like the one we are experiencing. However, we must always be respectful, patient and exemplary towards young people who love this beautiful game. I would like to apologize for my outburst and, if possible, , invite this fan to watch a game at Old Trafford [Manchester United's stadium] as a sign of fair play and sportsmanship," read the post on the player's social network.
Apologies that have not been enough neither for the boy's mother, nor for Scotland Yard, nor for Save The Children, a non-profit entity of which the footballer was an ambassador and which
has wanted to separate the Portuguese
from his side after the incident, according to the British press.
Meanwhile, the boy's family has rejected the player's public apology through his Instagram account.
"He is an autistic child who has been assaulted by a professional soccer player. This is my perspective as a mother," he assured.
He also has declined the offer to go see a Manchester United game.
"If someone beat him up in the street and then invited us to dinner, we wouldn't go. But
if it's Cristiano Ronaldo, do we have to go? It sounds like we owe him a favor. My son has made it very clear that he doesn't want to go, or see Ronaldo
."
A controversy for which the woman has also confessed to feeling harassed through social networks by Manchester United fans, who would have closed ranks with Cristiano Ronaldo.
CR7
himself is the father of 4 children
-the eldest, one born from Georgina's womb and two of them by surrogacy according to the British press- whom he shows in photos published through social networks and whom he fervently defends before the comments from the press and fans.
In his apology for the incident,
Cristiano acknowledged that he was experiencing "difficult times".
Something that is objectively true.
2022 is turning out to be a disastrous year in sports for the Portuguese both individually and collectively with the Manchester Red Devils team.
So far this year, he has accumulated four sports casualties.
One of them corresponding to an illness that separated him from his professional activity for six days and another three corresponding to injuries: in the groin, in the hip and the last one in the shin during the match against Everton in which the incident occurred.
An unparalleled number of sick leave for the Portuguese in a period of just four months
.
Also, it is
the first season in 10 years in which Cristiano Ronaldo will not win any title
.
His current team, Manchester United, has been having a dismal performance in recent months.
He was eliminated by Atlético de Madrid in the Champions League, has only won one of the last five games in the English league and is currently seventh in the standings, out of the Champions League and Europa League positions.
A position to which Cristiano is not used to.
In the absence of a miracle to sneak into Champions positions, something mathematically possible but unlikely in view of the team's performance,
the situation would force Cristiano Ronaldo to have to find a new team at the end of the season
if he wants to play next year to the fullest competitive level in the Champions League.
Meanwhile, his wife Georgina remains oblivious to the controversy and enjoys the success of her series Soy Georgina, which premiered at the beginning of the year.
In addition, while the controversy surrounding her husband's slap continues to grow, she has indulged herself by buying a Hermés crocodile and diamond bag valued at more than 340,000 euros.
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