Legendary footballer Cristiano Ronaldo had tears in his eyes after Portugal defeated Spain to win the UEFA Nations League final on Sunday. After the victory, which was settled in penalties after 120 minutes of gridlock, Ronald discussed the importance of winning for his country.
“What a joy,” Ronaldo said after the match, via ESPN. “First of all for this generation, which deserved a title of this magnitude, for our families. My children came here, my wife, my brother, my friends.
“Winning for Portugal is always special. I have many titles with clubs, but nothing is better than winning for Portugal. It’s tears. It’s duty done and a lot of joy.
“When you talk about Portugal, it is always a special feeling. Being captain of this generation is a source of pride. Winning a title is always the pinnacle in a national team.”
The victory marked Ronaldo’s third international triumph, preceded by his 2016 European Championship and 2019 Nations League winners’ medals. Ronaldo played through injury to score the all-important equalizing goal, but never considered missing the fixture.
“I had already felt it during the warmup, I had been feeling it for some time, but for the national team, if I had to break my leg, I would have broken it,” Ronaldo said. “It’s for a trophy, I had to play and I gave it my all.
“It’s for our nation. We are a small people, but with a very big ambition. The future is short term. Now is the time to rest well. I had the injury and that was the maximum, the maximum.
“I pushed, because for the national team you have to push.”
