Alan Shearer has commented on a "rule" involving Cristiano Ronaldo at Euro 2024.
Ronaldo is playing in a record-breaking sixth Euros tournament but has already admitted it will be his final competition.
The 39-year-old has captained Portugal to the quarter finals after they squeezed past Slovenia on penalties in the round of 16.
Advert
Ronaldo saw a penalty saved by Jan Oblak in extra time and was in tears afterwards.
He then recovered to make amends with his effort in the shoot-out and apologised to the fans.
The former Real Madrid and Manchester United star is yet to find the net in the showpiece and his behaviour has irked fans and pundits alike.
Advert
Former England captain Shearer is one of those who has been critical of Ronaldo being the main character.
But he has no doubt that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner will continue to lead the line as Roberto Martinez "doesn't have a choice" but to persist with him.
"With Ronaldo against Slovenia, it was all about Ronaldo, wasn’t it?" Shearer said, speaking to Betfair.
Advert
"He wanted to take every free-kick, despite him only scoring one in his last 60 attempts in major tournaments. One free-kick in 60 and he’s taking them from the touchline to try to score from there. He’s desperate to get a goal.
"I don’t think Martinez has a choice - Ronaldo plays. We saw that in their third game when Portugal had already qualified, only three players had started from the previous 11 and Ronaldo was one of them.
"He’s 39 years old and he’s taking all the free-kicks, he took that penalty and missed it, although he deserves great credit for the way he took the first penalty in the shootout because the pressure on him was absolutely huge.
"But Martinez doesn’t have a choice, if Ronaldo is fit Ronaldo plays. That’s the rule, I’m afraid."
Advert
Ronaldo is the record goalscorer for Portugal and in the Euros tournament, where he has found the net 14 times.
Topics: Alan Shearer, Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal, Euro 2024
Josh Lawless