The Swiss star warns of Ronaldo in this case
Swiss international striker Jerdan Shaqiri warned against putting Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo, 37, out of the accounts, when the two teams meet Tuesday in the final price of the World Cup in Qatar.
"You can't put Cristiano aside, he is one of the most outstanding players in the world alongside (Argentine Lionel) Messi," Shaqiri told reporters after Sunday's training session.
"This player can score at any second and minute, he has experience and everyone knows how important he is for Portugal and his team," added the former Liverpool and Bayern Munich striker.
Shakiri contributed to "Nati"'s 3-2 victory over Serbia in the third and last round of the group stage competitions, by opening the scoring and leading Switzerland to reach the final price.
Ronaldo's harvest, which his English club Manchester United released from his contract after his fiery statements in an interview in which he criticized the "Red Devils" and his Dutch coach Eric ten Hag, in the Qatar World Cup, was limited to an orphan goal from a penalty kick in the victory over Ghana 3-2 at the start of Portugal's first-round matches. groups.
Although Shakiri moved to play for the American Chicago Fire, he is well aware that, regardless of the threat posed by Ronaldo, there are also several players in Portugal who can make a difference and threaten his country.
He said, "We also have to know the rest of the players, because it's not just Ronaldo. They have many good players and young men who can make a big difference and we need to perform well because we are in the knockout stages, and anything can happen...".
Although Shakiri imposed himself as a trump card and a creative force in Switzerland, he confirms that the key to the chances of success for the "Nati" national team is based on collective ability, stressing that "the key is for the national team to perform exceptionally. There is no Cristiano (Ronaldo) in our team, we are We need the whole team to succeed. If everyone sticks together and performs at the highest level, I'm sure we have a chance to move forward."
The two teams faced each other twice in the European Nations League in June. Portugal won the first at home in Lisbon 4-0, including two goals for Ronaldo, before Switzerland took revenge a week later in the return leg by winning 1-0 in Geneva.
Shaqiri believes that the increasing pressure generated by participating in the knockout stages of the World Cup makes past confrontations a mere memory.
He added, "We know the Portuguese national team very well. We played against it several times in friendly matches, in the Nations League. We lost some and won others, and for me all possibilities are open. It is a knockout match and they will play well."
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Switzerland,
Portugal,
Cristiano Ronaldo,
World Cup 2022