Cristiano Ronaldo has hailed Rafael Nadal as an "incredible" inspiration to millions around the world after the King of Clay announced he will retire from tennis next month.

Having struggled with injuries throughout the last couple of years, 22-time grand slam champion Nadal confirmed 2024 will be his final year on the ATP Tour on Thursday.

Nadal will call time on his glittering career after November's Davis Cup finals in Malaga, where he will feature for a Spain team also containing four-time major champion Carlos Alcaraz.

Only Margaret Court, Novak Djokovic (24 each) and Serena Williams (23) have won more grand slam singles titles than Nadal in tennis history (22), with his 14 triumphs at the French Open a record for titles won at a single major.

He posted a video explaining his decision to bow out to his social media channels on Thursday, saying he had been playing with "limitations" for the last two years.

Five-time Ballon d'Or winner Ronaldo was among the first to react to the news, commenting on Nadal's Instagram post: "Rafa, what an incredible race you've had! 

"Your dedication, passion and incredible talent have inspired millions around the world.

"It has been an honour to witness your journey and to be able to call you a friend. Congrats on an amazing career! Enjoy your retirement!"

Sadio Mane scored a goal in either half, helping Al-Nassr cruise to a 3-0 win over Al-Orubah and close in on the top two in the Saudi Pro League.

Cristiano Ronaldo had given the hosts the lead from the spot, setting them on their way to a dominant victory.

After a slow start, Jean Seri was penalised for a handball, and Ronaldo made no mistake from the spot. After a stuttering run-up, he coolly slotted his strike into the bottom-left corner.

Mane got his first on the stroke of half-time, latching onto Ronaldo's pull-back before firing his low shot into the far side of the net.

He could have had a hat-trick, having also hit the woodwork and squandered a first-time shot by slicing it wide, but he did get his second in the 71st minute, guiding Nawaf Bu Washi's cross past Gaetan Coucke.

Cristian Tello came closest to a consolation for the visitors, smashing a long-range effort off the crossbar. 

Data Debrief: Mane's time to shine

Mane, so far this season, has been providing the spark as a playmaker after registering five assists in Al-Nassr's first five games in the Saudi Pro League.

Today, however, he regained his scoring touch, getting his first two goals of the campaign.

He had the most shots (five), and shots on target (three), as he accumulated 0.97 expected goals (xG), while his seven touches in the box was the most of any player on the field. 

Cristiano Ronaldo says his focus has shifted away from trying to break individual records as he does not have "much time left on the pitch".

The 39-year-old scored what proved to be the match-winning goal in a 2-1 victory for Al-Nassr over Al-Rayyan of Qatar in their AFC Champions League Group B match on Monday.

It was his 904th career goal, having recently hit the 900-landmark during Portugal's Nations League opener against Croatia.

With Al-Nassr currently on a four-match winning streak in all competitions under new manager Stefano Pioli, Ronaldo insisted his aim was to help the team where he could instead of chasing personal achievements.

"It was a strong and difficult match, like all the matches in the AFC Champions League, but the most important thing is that we created many chances and defended well to prevent the opponent from creating easy chances," Ronaldo told a press conference after the match.

"I'm just enjoying playing football now, as I know I don't have much time left on the pitch.

"It is not important anymore whether I am the best or not, I no longer care about that. It is good for a player to score goals, but for me, it is better for the team to win.

"I am used to breaking records and I no longer look for them. The most important thing for me now is to enjoy and help Al-Nassr and my teammates to win."

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner has scored 71 goals since joining Al-Nassr in December 2022.

Last season, he became the top scorer in a single season in the Saudi Pro League, netting 35 times as the team finished second behind Al-Hilal.

Cristiano Ronaldo was on target from the penalty spot to help secure Al-Nassr a 2-0 victory over 10-man Al-Wehda in the Saudi Pro League on Friday.

Angelo had given the hosts the leave just before the break, and Al-Wehda's game went from bad to worse as Waleed Bakshween received some late marching orders.

Al-Nassr dominated the first half and, after Wesley had struck the woodwork, finally got their reward in the 40th minute as Angelo latched onto Sadio Mane's throughball to lob a fine finish over Abdullah Al Owaishir.

Al-Wehda showed some fight after going behind, with Youssef Amyn flashing a shot wide on the stroke of half-time before Juninho Bacuna forced Bento into a good save after the restart.

The result was put beyond doubt shortly after though – Mohamed Al Makahasi pulled down Sultan Al Ghannam in the box, and Ronaldo made no mistake with the resulting spot-kick.

Mane was denied a goal of his own in the 81st minute, with Ronaldo straying just offside in the build-up, before Bakshween received a needless second yellow card for dissent five minutes later. 

Al-Nassr move up to second in the table, just one point behind leaders Al-Hilal, for now, with Al-Wehda down in 14th. 

Data Debrief: Pioli makes dream start

Stefano Pioli won his first match in the Saudi Pro League 3-0 against Al-Ettifaq, and on Friday, became the first manager in the club's history to start his reign with back-to-back clean sheets in the competition.

The hard work was done in the first half though, as Al-Nassr had 14 of their 19 shots, accumulating 1.42 expected goals as they hit the target five times. 

Stefano Pioli won his first game in charge of Al-Nassr, with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Al-Ettifaq on Friday.

Cristiano Ronaldo netted the first goal of Pioli's reign as Al-Nassr picked up just their second win in the Saudi Pro League this season.

It was a fairly even first half until Abdullah Madu fouled Sultan Al Ghannam in the box, and Ronaldo made no mistake from 12 yards to put the visitors in front.

Angelo and Talisca were both denied by the goalkeeper before half-time, but Al-Nassr doubled their lead with the first shot of the second half, as Salem Al Najdi scored a delightful chip from a tight angle in the 56th minute.

Talisca did get his goal in the 70th minute, beating Marek Rodak for power with his low drive after being picked out by Sadio Mane.

Ronaldo almost got a second late on, but with just one minute remaining, he struck the woodwork with a long-range strike. 

Data Debrief: Pioli inspires total dominance

Al-Ettifaq were unbeaten coming into this game, but they offered little in terms of fight, mustering just six shots, two of which were on target, and created just 0.44 expected goals. 

Al-Nassr on the other hand, tested Rodak with half of their 14 shots on target (1.83 xG) - Talisca had the most (five) and was rewarded for it with his late goal.

It was Mane who pulled the strings though, creating four chances, and claiming two assists, while his 18 passes into the final third were the most of anyone on the pitch. 

Al Nassr are on the hunt for a new boss after dismissing head coach Luis Castro, the Saudi Pro League side confirmed on Tuesday.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. have struggled through an underwhelming start to the season, winning just one of their opening three league fixtures of the campaign.

The Riyadh club were also defeated in the Saudi Super Cup final 4-1 against champions Al Hilal last month.

Al Nassr have seen enough, swiftly moving to part ways with 63-year-old Castro, who previously took charge of Brazilian Serie A side Botafago.

"Everyone at AlNassr would like to thank Luis and his staff for their dedicated work during the past 14 months," the club said in a brief statement on social media.

Castro, a fellow Portugal compatriot to Ronaldo, led the club to lift the Arab Club Champions Cup last year, a competition contested by 37 teams from Asia and Africa.

However, Al Nassr finished second in the league last season, 14 points behind Jorge Jesus' Al Hilal, who were inspired by the goal-scoring exploits of Aleksandar Mitrovic.

Al Nassr drew 1-1 against Al Shorta of Iraq on Monday in the opening game of the AFC Champions League Elite, which proved to be Castro's final match at the helm.

Stefano Pioli, formerly of AC Milan, is one of Al Nassr's preferred replacements according to reports in local Saudi media.

Cristiano Ronaldo is capable of reaching 1,000 career goals as long as he continues to look after his body, according to Jorge Andrade.

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner netted his 900th goal for club and country in Portugal's 2-1 Nations League win over Croatia on 5 September.

Ronaldo then added to his tally with a late winner in the 2-1 victory over Scotland three days later, setting him on his way to reaching the four-figure milestone.

Former Portugal star Jorge Andrade, speaking at the Thinking Football Summit organised by Liga Portugal, backed his compatriot to do just that.

"With Cristiano Ronaldo, nothing is impossible," Andrade said to Stats Perform. 

"Since we've watched football, the idea of the 1,000 goals is associated with our great idol, Pele. 

"But nowadays, both Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have managed to overcome other idols, Diego Maradona and Pele. 

"They managed to be the highlight of the football game in a short time. It's not surprising Ronaldo can break that record. He looks after his body. 

"He has a history of very few injuries. In terms of the Portuguese national team and the league he is in, he manages his efforts well."

Ronaldo has scored 132 of his goals for Portugal, with whom he won Euro 2016, while the other 769 have come at club level.

The 39-year-old has scored 68 times for current club Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, where he has spent the past 20 months.

While Ronaldo continues to score freely in the Middle East, long-time rival Messi is now plying his trade in the United States with Inter Miami.

Andrade, best remembered for his time at Deportivo during his playing career, believes both deserve credit for taking on challenges elsewhere.

"The most important thing for them is that they share the experiences they have even in adverse environments," he said. 

"For example, Messi now plays in MLS. It's a difficult league; it's a league that doesn't have much visibility. 

"He managed to be there and increase visibility. Cristiano Ronaldo went to Saudi Arabia and it's a complicated environment. 

"He increased the visibility of that championship, making it attractive for other players to play who had just the five major leagues as the main goal to play.

"In other words, these two players have changed the world of football."

A Bassam Al-Hurayji own goal in the 100th minute of the match handed Al-Nassr a 1-1 draw against Al-Ahli and denied Ivan Toney a winning start to life in Saudi Arabia.

Franck Kessie looked to have won all three points for Al-Ahli with a wonderful effort from the outside of the box after 57 minutes, but Al-Nassr's pressure was rewarded late on when Al-Hurayji diverted Sultan Alghannam's cross into his own net.

The home side started the match well, with Sadio Mane seeing an early effort cleared off the line and Marcelo Brozovic testing Edouard Mendy from distance, but they were unable to find a way through in the first half.

Kessie had gone close just after the break, dragging his shot wide of the far post, but he was not to be denied a second time. He met a pullback on the edge of the box, opening his foot to send a wonderful effort into the top-left corner.

But Cristiano Ronaldo's side kept probing, with Talisca deflecting a shot wide of the far post before they eventually got on the scoresheet thanks to Al-Hurayji's attempted block.

Data Debrief: Al-Nassr continue scoring streak - just

After scoring in the closing stages, with a bit of luck, Al-Nassr have now scored in their last 22 Saudi Pro League matches, a feat which has not been achieved since March-December 2017, with the final match in that sequence also being against Al-Ahli.

Furthermore, they are now unbeaten in their last six matches against Al-Ahli, which equals the longest unbeaten streak in the fixture - their opponents once went six games unbeaten between 2011 and 2013, winning three and drawing three.

Manchester United head coach Erik ten Hag has brushed aside Cristiano Ronaldo's latest comments as he continues to block out the criticism surrounding his tenure. 

Ronaldo, who recently surpassed 900 career goals during the international break, returned to Old Trafford in 2021 for a second stint at the club he made his name at. 

The Portugal international netted 27 goals in 55 appearances in all competitions across one and a half seasons but fell out of favour under Ten Hag before joining Al Nassr in December 2022.

During the 2021-22 season, no one registered more goal contributions in the Premier League for United than Ronaldo (21, 18 goals and three assists), while he also produced an expected goals tally (xG) of 17.75, also the highest in the Red Devils squad. 

And speaking to former United team-mate Rio Ferdinand on a podcast, Ronaldo said Ten Hag had been wrong to say in a pre-season interview that the club were "a long way away" from winning the Premier League. 

When questioned about the veteran forward's comments, Ten Hag said: "No, he said this, if you read the article very well.

"He is entitled to his opinion. It's OK. He is far away in Saudi, far away from Manchester."

United headed into the international break off the back of successive defeats in the Premier League, the latest coming in a 3-0 humbling against arch rivals Liverpool. 

The Red Devils have now lost as many as two of their first three league games in a season for the second time under the Dutchman's tenure (also 2022-23). 

They last lost three of their first four back in 1986-87, when Ron Atkinson was sacked and replaced by Sir Alex Ferguson. 

While United are unbeaten in their last 12 Premier League away games against the Saints, the encounter at St. Mary's seems a seismic one for Ten Hag's future at the club.

The two-week break since the Liverpool defeat has seen Ten Hag's future widely discussed, but the Dutchman insisted that the outside noise did not bother him. 

"It doesn't impact me. I know where we are in the process and what we have to do and where we are going," Ten Hag said.

"I have said before we are still in a transition period.

"We have to integrate a lot of young players in the team and still have to deal with injuries and bring players back into the team.

"Before anyone thinks about excuses, no, we have to win every game. I know that. The team knows that. It doesn't matter who is available."

The international window is over, as Premier League football returns this weekend, but the two-week break had supporters reminiscing. 

From 2004 to 2016, Barclays was the Premier League's sponsor.

And in a trend that has taken over social media, "Barclaysmen" have been picked out as players synonymous with that 12-year period. 

Here, we take a deep dive into Opta data to find out which players were the actual hallmarks of the Barclays Premier League. 

410 - Gareth Barry led the way with 410 matches played for Aston Villa, Manchester City and Everton between 2004 and 2016 – he is, of course, also the Premier League's all-time record holder for appearances too, with a whopping 653 to his name.

James Milner is set to overtake Barry this season, though, and 369 of his 637 matches came in this 12-year span.

178 - Bursting onto the scene as a 16-year-old, Wayne Rooney would go on to become one of the greatest goalscorers the division has ever seen. 

Starting his career with Everton, Rooney joined Manchester United in 2004, where he won five league titles during the Barclays era. 

In that 12-year span, no player scored more goals than the mercurial forward, who netted 178 times, with his former United club-mate Robin van Persie (144) second, ahead of Chelsea's Frank Lampard (132).

Rooney wasn't just a goalscorer. He also provided 88 assists in this era, taking his total goal contributions tally to 266, 54 more than the next-best, Lampard (212).

1,430 - Naturally, being the top goalscorer from 2004 and 2016, Rooney also tops the rankings for the most shots taken during that period, with 1,430.

Rooney's most prolific season came during the 2011-12 campaign, when he netted 27 Premier League goals, but it wasn't enough to stop rivals Manchester City from lifting their first top-flight title since 1968. 

Midfielder Lampard (1,118) is next on the list for shots, with Van Persie (963), Jermain Defoe (939) and Steven Gerrard (919) next.

95 - What about creativity?

When it comes to assists, there were no better in this time span than Cesc Fabregas, who laid on 95 goals across spells at Arsenal and Chelsea.

Interestingly, though, Gerrard (767) led the way for chances created, with Lampard (759) also coming in ahead of Fabregas, though it is worth noting the Spaniard spent time away from the Premier League after leaving Arsenal for Barcelona.

43 - When it comes to headed goals, you won't be surprised to see that six-foot-seven-inch Peter Crouch led the way, with 43.

Crouch represented Aston Villa, Southampton, Liverpool, Portsmouth, Spurs and Stoke during the Barclays era, becoming well-known for his lanky frame and ability in the air. 

He 'heads' the list by 12 goals to former Everton forward Tim Cahill, who scored 31 goals with his head despite being three inches under six foot.

30 - Having come close to having the most goals in the Barclays era, Lampard tops the list for the most goals scored from outside the box across its 12-year timeframe. 

Known for his incredible knack of being in the right place at the right time, Lampard's ability both in and outside the box made him one of the deadliest midfielders the division has ever seen. 

Strikes against Norwich City, Fulham and away at Goodison Park are standouts, with the Englishman often finding the back of the net when pulling back his cultured right foot. 

11 - While James Ward-Prowse leads the way for the most free-kick goals scored in the Premier League, Sebastian Larsson might just be the true embodiment of a Barclaysman.

The former Arsenal, Birmingham City and Sunderland midfielder scored 11 direct free-kick goals between 2004-05 and 2015-16, one more than five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo and Morten Gamst Pederson, who must be another candidate for the ultimate Barclaysman.

That being said, who had the most direct free-kick shots? It wasn't any of the above. Instead, it was Lampard, who tried his luck 173 times, scoring on nine occasions.

486 - Charles N'Zogbia. Remember him?

A star for Wigan Athletic, N'Zogbia completed 486 dribbles during his time in the division. Surprisingly, Glen Johnson, a full-back, was the next best with 481, ahead of Eden Hazard (463).

Remarkably, though, Ronaldo comes in at fifth, and that is despite only playing in five of the Barclays seasons. He completed 449 dribbles in total, an average of 2.7 per game.

1,107 - Jussi Jaaskelainen, the baby-faced Finn, made 1,107 saves in the Barclays era, which puts him ahead of Mark Schwarzer (1,018) and Tim Howard (1,014).

Petr Cech, meanwhile, was the goalkeeper to keep the most clean sheets (178).

48 - Now time for the unlucky statistics during the Barclays era. During his spells with Arsenal and Man United, no one struck the woodwork more than Robin van Persie. 

Despite netting 144 goals in his 280 Premier League appearances, ranking 14th on the all-time list, the Dutchman could have been among the top 10 scorers to play in the division had it not been for the crossbar and posts.

Van Persie also squandered the most big chances (80), though Sergio Aguero (78) was hot on his heels.

910- Out on his own by three, former Aston Villa, Man City and QPR defender Richard Dunne is the unfortunate man to have scored the most own goals between 2001-02 and 2012-13, with 10.

Across his time in the Premier League, the Republic of Ireland did manage to score more goals at the right end, finishing his career in 2015 with 11 top-flight strikes. 

Cristiano Ronaldo believes Manchester United "cannot rebuild without knowledge" as he urged Erik ten Hag to take advice from assistant coach - and former Red Devils striker - Ruud van Nistelrooy.

United opened the Premier League season with a 1-0 win over Fulham, but then suffered back-to-back defeats against Brighton and Hove Albion and Liverpool.

It is the second time under Ten Hag the Red Devils have lost as many as two of their first three league games in a season (also 2022-23); as many times as in their previous 29 campaigns combined.

United have also scored three goals fewer than their xG suggests they should have so far this term (two goals, 5.2 xG), the biggest such difference for any team in the Premier League.

Ten Hag was recently joined in the dugout by compatriot Van Nistelrooy, who scored 150 in 219 appearances at Old Trafford between 2001 and 2006.

And Ronaldo - the scorer of 145 in 346 games across his two spells - thinks the Red Devils will benefit from the wisdom of people with prior experience and knowledge of the club.

"[As the] Man United manager; you cannot say that you're not going to fight to win the Premier League or Champions League," he told former team-mate Rio Ferdinand on FiveUK.

"You've to say: 'maybe we've not got the potential, but we're going to try'. You have to try!

"If Ten Hag listens to Ruud van Nistelrooy, maybe he can help. He knows the club and the club should listen to the guys who were there [like] Rio, Roy Keane, [Paul] Scholes, Gary Neville, Alex Ferguson. You cannot rebuild a club without knowledge."

United return to action this weekend away at pointless Southampton, against whom they are unbeaten in their last 12 Premier League visits since a 1-0 defeat in August 2003.

The Red Devils have also lost just one of their last 30 Premier League matches against promoted sides, winning 15 of their last 17 such games.

Five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo has backed Kylian Mbappe to win the award this year, tipping Erling Haaland, Jude Bellingham and Lamine Yamal to provide his competition. 

Al-Nassr forward Ronaldo, like his great rival Lionel Messi, was left off the 30-man shortlist for the 2024 edition of world football's most prestigious individual honour.

It is the first time since 2003 that neither man has featured among the nominees, having shared the prize among them exclusively from Ronaldo's first triumph in 2008 to his last in 2017.

With a first-time winner guaranteed, Ronaldo has provided his backing to Mbappe, who finished third in the voting last year, behind Messi and Haaland.

Mbappe scored 44 goals and provided 10 assists in all competitions throughout his final season with Paris Saint-Germain in 2023-24, before completing his long-awaited move to Real Madrid.

Ronaldo – Madrid's all-time leading scorer with 450 goals for Los Blancos – believes everything at the Santiago Bernabeu is set up to make Mbappe's tenure a success.

"I think he will do well. The structure of the club... it's nice, it's good," Ronaldo said on his YouTube channel.

"They have a great coach and the president, Florentino [Perez], who has been there many, many years. 

"I think it won't be a big problem because of his talent. Mbappe can be the next Ballon d'Or winner. Him, [Erling] Haaland, [Jude] Bellingham or Lamine [Yamal]."

Madrid won their record-extending 15th European Cup/Champions League crown last season, coming through dramatic ties against Manchester City and Bayern Munich before beating Borussia Dortmund in the final.

Their knockout success has led some to suggest fortune tends to favour them in the big moments, but Ronaldo says they make their own luck.

"Madrid is the kind of team where they don't rush under pressure. People say they're lucky in the Champions League," he said.

"No, they are not lucky. They're prepared for this kind of moment. The Bernabeu has that different aura.

"Now, if you say that Madrid are going to be better or not, we don't know. Mbappe is there now, I think Madrid will stay strong, but I don't know if they will be better than last year. Only God knows."

Harry Kane feels at his peak ahead of his landmark England appearance on Tuesday, taking inspiration from Cristiano Ronaldo's latest goal-scoring achievement.

Kane is set to make his 100th England appearance at Wembley in their Nations League fixture with Finland, becoming only the 10th player to reach that milestone. 

His landmark appearance will see him awarded with a golden cap ahead of kick-off, the first player to receive one since Wayne Rooney did so in November 2014.

The Bayern Munich striker has made 86 starts for the Three Lions and has 83 goal involvements (66 goals - an England record - and 17 assists) to his name.

He averages a goal every 117 minutes, having 3.5 shots and 1.6 shots on target per 90, creating an average of 1.1 chances per 90.

Since his international debut in 2015, Kane has won 61 of his matches for England, giving him a 61.6% win ratio while also captaining the side to two major tournament finals.

At 31-years-old, many believe his time on the international stage may come to an end soon, but Kane has taken inspiration from Ronaldo, who, at 39-years-old, netted his 900th career goal against Croatia last week.

"I feel in really good shape, both physically and mentally, at a peak in my career," Kane said.

"Watching other players, [Cristiano] Ronaldo scoring his 901st goal, seeing him compete at 39 years old inspires me to play for as long as possible.

"I love this game, I love representing England - more than anything and I don’t want it to end any time soon.

"For me, personally, now it’s about continuing to improve and being consistent both in an England shirt and at club level.

"I’m hungry for more. I’m determined to keep pushing the boundaries."

81 of Kane's 99 caps came under former England head coach Gareth Southgate, with the others coming under Roy Hodgson, Sam Allardyce, and most recently, Lee Carsley. 

Carsley got his reign as the Three Lions' interim boss with an impressive 2-0 win over the Republic of Ireland on Saturday, with goals coming from Declan Rice and Jack Grealish. 

Kane managed the most shots (four) and touches in the opposition box (nine) at the Aviva Stadium and is enjoying life under the 50-year-old.

"It has been really good. A new energy into the place especially after the disappointing end to the summer," Kane said.

"It has been great to work with the boss so far. He's brought his ideas, how he wants us to play. I think the lads have enjoyed it.

"We've got a good mixture of youth and experience in the team. You're seeing the excited faces of some of the new players."

Scotland boss Steve Clarke has declared that his side "deserved something" from their Nations League clash with Portugal after losing 2-1 thanks to a late Cristiano Ronaldo goal.

Scott McTominay gave Scotland an early lead after seven minutes, but Portugal fought back through goals from Bruno Fernandes and Ronaldo to take all three points in Group A1.

Ronaldo's goal came in the 88th minute and was his 901st career goal.

It leaves Scotland on their longest-ever winless run as they remain without a win in their last eight competitive games in all competitions, but Clarke feels they should not have left Lisbon empty-handed.

"I'm disappointed to lose a game where it looked, for a large period, we would get something from it," he told the BBC.

"I'm really disappointed for my players because I think they deserved to get something from the game.

"If you ignore the results, [there are a lot of positives], but we're professional, so it's disappointing.

"We played well in these two games, but we don't have anything to show for it. I've told the players not to be too hard on themselves. They have to understand the work that we're doing."

Scotland did well to prevent Portugal from getting any further sight at goal, defending a total of 26 shots during the match with seven ending up on target.

The 16 shots the Scots had to defend in the opening 45 minutes were the most they have faced in a first-half since October 2012 when Belgium also let loose 16 efforts.

"With the amount of balls that go into the box, you know one of them can go in the back of the net and that's what happened to us," added Clarke.

"When you bring quality players from the bench like Roberto [Martinez] can do, you always know there's a risk, but I felt we handled it well.

"We'll go away and analyse these games, and hopefully, we can give the lads a few pointers for the games next month, which don't get any easier."

Gamechanger Ronaldo was brought on at half-time by Portugal manager Roberto Martinez, a move that was well thought through and had the desired effect.

"Ronaldo did 17 sprints against Croatia. He is the player who made the most sprints. So we need to protect the players. One more game in 72 hours is impossible to have a physical performance [equal]," Martinez explained.

"The question was whether Ronaldo played the first half and left or came in and finished the game. That was the decision.

"He is an asset to the national team. When he comes in, if the [team] needs goals, Cris gives energy and a feeling to the fans. The stadium is different.

"If Cris leaves, it's the opposite and facilitates what the opponent would like to do when playing away from home in Portugal."

Cristiano Ronaldo came off the bench to score the winner as Portugal earned a 2-1 victory, condemning Scotland to another late defeat.

The 39-year-old, who started on the bench in a competitive match for the first time since the 2022 World Cup, added to Bruno Fernandes' strike after Scott McTominay had given Scotland the lead early on.

The home crowd were just as stunned as Portugal's defence when McTominay snuck in behind, thumping Kenny McLean's cross past a stranded Diogo Costa after just seven minutes.

The hosts certainly had their chances to get back into the game though – Angus Gunn made a brilliant save to deny Rafael Leao, who also fired a number of efforts wide of the left post.

Though Scotland tried to continue soaking up the pressure, their defence was eventually breached nine minutes after the break, with Fernandes marking his 30th birthday with a sweeping finish from 20 yards out. 

Gunn smothered Joao Felix's low shot in the 78th minute before Ronaldo came within millimetres of a winner as his header hit the inside of the far post.

But Ronaldo would have the final say as he stretched out a leg in the six-yard box to turn Nuno Mendes' cross into the back of the net.

Data Debrief: Ronaldo the hero once again

Steve Clarke could not have asked for more from his team in the first half, as they scored with their only effort, but also resolutely defended as Portugal racked up 16 shots (three on target), creating 1.21 expected goals (xG).

It was a regular creator that got the Selecao back on level terms though, as Fernandes got his 21st goal involvement under Roberto Martinez in all competitions, at least five more than any other Portugal player (11 goals, 10 assists). 

And Ronaldo is now up to 901 career goals, with only Aleksandar Mitrovic (14), Erling Haaland (12) and Romelu Lukaku (10) bettering his nine-goal tally in the Nations League.