Tuesday 14 June 2016 16:10, UK
Cristiano Ronaldo took centre stage in Real Madrid's Champions League win over Atletico Madrid, but can he lead Portugal to glory at Euro 2016?
Cristiano Ronaldo rarely passes up an opportunity to take the limelight but he wasn't present when Portugal faced England at Wembley in a tournament warm-up. "Let me rest my legs," he said after capping another extraordinary season with Real Madrid by clinching Champions League success at the San Siro. Few could begrudge him a couple of days off.
The 2015/16 campaign was the sixth in a row in which he has scored over 50 goals for the club, and his winning penalty in the shoot-out against Atletico ensured it ended with all eyes on him. Fate has a way of aligning with Ronaldo, and, just like in Lisbon two years ago, his shirtless celebration became the defining image of Real's European coronation.
The celebrations have died down and Ronaldo's brief period of recuperation is over, and now his attention is firmly fixed on Portugal's opening game against Iceland in St Etienne on June 12.
Ronaldo is in France knowing it could be his last shot at European Championship glory. He counts three Champions League medals and three Ballon d'Or awards in his personal trophy collection, but international silverware has eluded him. As he approaches the twilight of his career and ponders his legacy, he will be desperate to put that right.
Ronaldo has a long, colourful relationship with the competition. It served to kickstart his international career when Portugal hosted Euro 2004. The Manchester United teenager scored twice and converted a penalty in Portugal's shoot-out victory over England on their route to the final, but their shock defeat to Greece that year remains the closest he has come to lifting the trophy.
Euro 2008 - played to a backdrop of constant speculation surrounding his £80m move to Real Madrid - was Ronaldo's most disappointing tournament. There was a goal in a group stage win over the Czech Republic, but a costly defensive lapse in the quarter-finals allowed Miroslav Klose to give Germany a 2-0 first-half lead, and he was unable to make his mark on the encounter as Portugal slipped to a 3-2 defeat.
Four years later, Ronaldo went to Poland and Ukraine on the back of a record-breaking 60-goal season with Madrid. Portugal were drawn in a 'group of death' with Germany, Netherlands and Denmark, but he propelled them into the last eight with a scintillating two-goal display against the Dutch.
Ronaldo delivered another match-winning performance as Portugal edged out the Czechs to reach the last four, but he was unable to find a way through against Spain. After 120 goalless minutes in Donetsk, Ronaldo's preference to be the fifth penalty taker backfired, with Cesc Fabregas converting Spain's winner before he even had the chance to step up.
This summer, Ronaldo can become the first player to score in four separate European Championships. He is out to banish the demons of the past, but he no longer has youth on his side, and he is shouldering more responsibility than ever after Portugal's efficient but uninspiring qualifying campaign.
Portugal achieved qualification from Group I with seven consecutive one-goal victories after losing their opener against Albania without the injured Ronaldo. They scored just 1.4 goals per game compared to England's 3.1, Germany's 2.4 and Spain's 2.3, and their average of five shots on target per game was lower than Israel, Russia and Ukraine.
Ronaldo netted five of Portugal's 11 goals, with no other player scoring more than two. A shortage of top-class striking options is hardly a new issue for Portugal, but the days of Nuno Gomes, Hugo Almeida and Helder Postiga don't look so dismal now. Postiga scored five times in Euro 2012 qualifying. Nuno Gomes hit three on their way to Euro 2008. All of them scored at major tournaments.
For Euro 2016, the only out-and-out striker in Portugal's squad is Eder, who has never scored in a qualifying match - let alone an actual tournament. The 28-year-old has only netted twice in 24 appearances since his international debut in 2012, and he failed to find the net in 15 games for Swansea in the first half of last season.
Portugal boss Fernando Santos will hope for goalscoring support from Nani and Ricardo Quaresma, but that duo have combined for just five goals in 35 appearances with club and country since January. It's not exactly cause for optimism, and it all adds up to near total dependence on Ronaldo.
A Euro 2016 group containing Hungary, Iceland and Austria could hardly have been more favourable, but dragging Portugal all the way to the trophy would arguably rank as his greatest achievement. The spotlight is on Ronaldo again. This time, his task looks tougher than ever.
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