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‘I’m back!’: Cristiano Ronaldo makes World Cup history as Portugal crush Uzbekistan

Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring against Uzbekistan

Cristiano Ronaldo made his mark on the World Cup at the second time of asking Charlotte Wilson/Getty Images

By Tim Spiers, Nick Miller and Mark CareyJune 23, 2026 Updated 5:00 pm EDT

Cristiano Ronaldo had let one World Cup game pass him by; he was never going to let it happen twice.

“I’m back, I’m back,” Portugal’s talismanic forward shouted into a TV camera after the game. He has announced himself at this tournament, banishing the memory of his poor display against DR Congo with a masterclass against Uzbekistan, scoring twice in an emphatic 5-0 victory.

In doing so, he became the first player to score at six World Cups — a record that stretches back to 2006 — and ensured Portugal are almost certain to play in the last 32.

The Athletic analyse the big moments from Houston.

Is Ronaldo back?

It was difficult to identify the primary emotion Cristiano Ronaldo felt when he finally ended his goalscoring drought at major tournaments.

It had been some time since he scored a penalty against Ghana in Portugal’s opening match at Qatar 2022, with 10 goalless games at World Cups and a Euros since then. For context, his old pal Lionel Messi had scored 11 World Cup goals since Ronaldo’s last one.

The roar that followed his sixth-minute opener felt like a mixture of relief, delight and an awful lot of pent-up frustration. With Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland all scoring at least twice in each of their appearances, Ronaldo was being left behind. Not anymore.

U.S. readers watch here:

CRISTIANO RONALDO FIRST GOAL OF THE 2026 FIFA WORLD CUP! 🇵🇹 pic.twitter.com/7XxPQTNjvk

— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) June 23, 2026

UK readers watch here:

LISTEN TO THAT NOISE 🔊

Cristiano Ronaldo becomes the first player to score at 6⃣ different World Cups! pic.twitter.com/Ujv8hS0510

— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 23, 2026

His two goals were brilliantly taken; the first involved excellent movement at the near post to beat a dozing Abdulla Abdullaev to Joao Cancelo’s low cross, while the second saw him peel off two defenders through on goal before finding the far corner with a smart low finish.

The World Cup’s oldest ever outfield player became the first man to score at six World Cups, an exceptional feat of endurance, desire, longevity and brilliance.

He was only facing an overawed and inexperienced Uzbekistan defence, which must be taken into account, but given how it appears Ronaldo will play pretty much every minute for Portugal whatever the circumstances, this was an important breakthrough for their tournament hopes, as well as being a moment of World Cup history.

Asked by Portugal's Sport TV why he had shouted "I'm back", he replied: "Just so they don't forget, just so they don't forget... Always, 23 years like this.

"Breaking records is always nice, but my goal is to help the national team achieve its objectives. In this part, it was about getting through the qualifying round. It was a difficult, dark week; it felt like I'd already retired from football, but I held on as I always do because I believe more in hard work than in football. It was difficult, but we're back."

Tim Spiers

How did Ronaldo and Nuno Mendes fool Uzbekistan?

In his pre-match press conference, Roberto Martinez — who, whatever you think of his abilities as a coach, has exceptional patience to continually answer questions about Ronaldo in a pretty measured fashion — spoke about how one of his captain’s qualities is that he acts as a decoy.

“Ronaldo opens up spaces in defences,” he said. “The numbers support this. If you look at the last 32 games, he opens up more spaces than any other player.”

It probably wasn’t quite what he had in mind, but it was clear that using Ronaldo to distract the Uzbek defence for Portugal’s second goal was a deliberate plan.

A colossal roar went up in the stadium as soon as Ronaldo stood over the free kick, just outside the penalty area in the 17th minute, and you would imagine that only a very few even noticed Nuno Mendes was also lining it up.

Ronaldo lines up in trademark fashion…

He still looks poised as the referee blows his whistle…

But it's Nuno Mendes who runs up…

By the time the ball is past the wall, goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov still hasn't moved…

… and by then, it's too late as the ball is past him (ITV Sport)

After the PSG left-back had swept his shot into the bottom corner, Martinez had a massive ‘I love it when a plan comes together’ smile on his face and Ronaldo was frantically tapping his temple, as if to say ‘we outsmarted you all’.

It makes perfect sense, harnessing the inevitable focus on Portugal’s biggest star and exploiting the lack of focus that it inspires in the opposition defence. It’s a useful strategy even when Ronaldo isn’t playing well or scoring goals, but when he is, it’s doubly worthwhile.

And a word, too, for Austin MacPhee, Portugal's set-piece coach. MacPhee has impressed with his work at Aston Villa in the Premier League and his handiwork was evident not just in the Mendes free kick, but also in another deceptive routine in the second half that almost brought Ronaldo's hat-trick, and a low corner that resulted in goal No 4.

Nick Miller

How important is Fernandes for Portugal?

In a non-Cristiano Ronaldo world, Bruno Fernandes would be the star player of this Portugal team.

Off the back of an incredible season of creativity for Manchester United — he broke the Premier League assist record with 21 — Fernandes arrived at the World Cup in the best form of his career, and added another assist to his international tally against Uzbekistan.

Driving through the heart of the pitch towards the end of the first half, the 31-year-old slipped the ball perfectly between Uzbekistan’s defenders to feed Ronaldo for his second goal of the game. The weight of the pass was superb, allowing Ronaldo to finish first time.

While the location of the pass was different, it was an assist reminiscent of Fernandes’ pass for Matheus Cunha against Aston Villa in United's 3-1 win in March. Executed to perfection, breaking defensive lines, and a pass that had a message on it for his team-mate to finish one-v-one with the goalkeeper.

Another delicious pass saw Fernandes dink the ball over Uzbekistan bodies at a Portugal free kick in the second half, rivalling his assist for the best pass of the game, but Ronaldo could not convert this time.

Not only does Fernandes have a constant map in his head of the bodies around him, but he also has the technique to find his team-mates' runs with laser-focused accuracy.

Add that to his insatiable desire to win, and it is little wonder he is thought of as one of the best attacking midfielders in European football.

Mark Carey

Why has this been the World Cup of own goals?

While Portugal were creative in their corner routine, their fourth goal was one of the scruffier finishes you will see — as the ball fumbled off goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov for an own goal.

That was the ninth own goal of the tournament, in a summer that appears to be littered with them. For context, there were only two in total during the 2022 World Cup and 12 in 2018, with a rate in 2026 that looks likely to reach unprecedented levels.

Why might this be? The Athletic’s Michael Cox gave a detailed breakdown with some of the best hypotheses, but beyond the tactical nuance, there might be a rather simple, rudimentary explanation for this trend.

The expanded 48-team tournament has largely been a success from the football side, but the gulf in quality has been notable, with individual errors also rife in the early weeks. There have been some comedic actions — whether clumsy defending or erratic goalkeeping — and when you combine that with some of the most elite talent in world football, perhaps these sorts of mistakes are simply a byproduct of the game.

Mark Carey

Is there any hope for Uzbekistan?

Somewhat perversely, many Uzbeks back home will have cheered Portugal — or more to the point, Ronaldo — to victory.

Ronaldo is hero-worshipped in Uzbekistan like no other footballer, to the extent that when The Athletic visited the country in March to discover a football-mad country emerging from its former secret Soviet ways, many people said they would support Ronaldo against their own nation in this match.

It helped that there were no expectations whatsoever on the Uzbeks in this match. Their entire tournament was always expected to hinge on their final game against DR Congo and that has now come to fruition, in what will feel like their World Cup final.

However, while they have shown flashes against Colombia and Portugal, including a stunning 25-yard disallowed goal from Azizjon Ganiev here, they'll need a lot more against their African opponents (assuming DR Congo don't beat Colombia later tonight, a result that would eliminate Fabio Cannavaro's team). Goal difference will also be a concern for claiming a top-eight third-placed spot.