Adidas use technology to confirm Cristiano Ronaldo did not score Portugal's opener vs Uruguay
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Adidas have used technology to "definitively show" that no contact was made between Cristiano Ronaldo and the ball for Portugal's opener against Uruguay.
It looked as though Ronaldo had equalised for Fernando Santos' side on Monday night when he threw his head at a Bruno Fernandes cross.
The 37-year-old celebrated as if he'd scored and initially, replays appeared to show Ronaldo getting the slightest touch on the ball before it nestled past Sebastian Sosa.
Moments later and, to his surprise, the former Manchester United forward looked up at the scoreboard to see Bruno Fernandes had been awarded the goal.
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Ronaldo was still trying to claim the goal after full-time. In fact, he texted Piers Morgan about FIFA giving his 'goal' to Bruno Fernandes in the aftermath of Portugal's 2-0 win.
TalkTV host Morgan, who recently spoke to Ronaldo for an explosive interview, tweeted: "Ronaldo confirmed to me that his head touched the ball. Even Bruno agrees."
Spanish show El Chiringuito TV even suggested the Portuguese FA would submit evidence to prove the goal should have been awarded to the five-time Ballon d'Or winner.
But now, Adidas have used the 500Hz sensor inside this year's World Cup ball to confirm Ronaldo did not touch the ball.
A statement from Adidas read: “In the match between Portugal and Uruguay, using the Connected Ball Technology housed in Adidas’s Al Rihla Official Match Ball, we are able to definitively show no contact on the ball from Cristiano Ronaldo for the opening goal in the game.
“No external force on the ball could be measured as shown by the lack of ‘heartbeat’ in our measurements and in the attached graphic.
“The 500Hz IMU sensor inside the ball allows us to be highly accurate in our analysis.”
In his post-match interview on Monday night, Bruno Fernandes admitted he thought Ronaldo had equalled Eusebio's record of nine World Cup goals when he jumped to meet his cross.
“I celebrated as if it had been Cristiano's goal," he said. "It seemed to me that he had touched the ball. My aim was to cross the ball for him.
“We are happy with the victory regardless of who scored. The most important thing is that we achieved our aim which is to be in the next round.”
Featured Image Credit: Adidas
Topics: Football World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal, Uruguay
