Bruno Fernandes reflects on how Cristiano Ronaldo’s red card hurt Portugal: ‘He knows he made a mistake’

Last Thursday, Portugal let the chance to secure their place in the FIFA World Cup 2026 slip away after losing 2–0 to Ireland. That day, Cristiano Ronaldo’s red card was a heavy blow for the team, which couldn’t find a way to respond after going down a man. Now Bruno Fernandes has shared his thoughts.

“He knows it wasn’t something he wanted to do, but it happened, and he knows he made a mistake,” Fernandes said about Ronaldo during a press conference on Saturday, shared by Sportskeeda. “It was a moment where Cris reacted in a way that cost him dearly.”

The Manchester United player then tried to play down the importance of the red card, at a time when many voices in Portugal were criticizing Cristiano. “A red card is something normal in football,” Bruno said. “Even before the red card, we were already behind in the score.”

However, Fernandes also acknowledged that Ronaldo’s expulsion was a blow the team couldn’t recover from. “Obviously, that made things more difficult because we were only playing with ten men, and we didn’t have a player capable of scoring at any moment,” the midfielder explained.

Portugal lost their top scorer

Cristiano Ronaldo is unquestionably Portugal’s biggest star, not only because of his historic achievements with the national team, of which he is the all-time leading scorer, but also because of his current form: CR7 leads the team’s scoring chart in the current qualifiers, with 5 goals in 5 matches.

“He won’t be able to help us tomorrow,” Bruno Fernandes lamented during Saturday’s press conference, making clear how important the Al Nassr forward is to the team. In his place, coach Roberto Martinez will likely choose Goncalo Ramos, a center forward with different characteristics from Cristiano Ronaldo but still dangerous inside the box.

Portugal have a crucial objective ahead

The loss to Ireland was especially painful because it prevented Portugal from securing qualification for the FIFA World Cup 2026, pushing the Group F of the European qualifiers decision a few days further. Now everything will be settled this Sunday, on Matchday 6.

Portugal know that a victory will secure first place in the group and, therefore, direct qualification. They also face the weakest team in the group, Armenia, who so far have recorded one win and four losses. However, Roberto Martinez’s team cannot afford to relax, as Hungary are just two points behind them and could challenge for first place with a win over Ireland.

After leading the Group F standings throughout the qualifiers, losing first place would be a harsh blow for Portugal. It would mean having to compete in the European playoff in March, where they could face strong opponents and potentially put their World Cup participation at risk.