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Cristiano Ronaldo has played alongside some incredibly talented individuals for the Portugal national team.
Cristiano Ronaldo has had an illustrious career and has played for some of the best teams in modern-day football. While his club-career record is at a level of its own, his achievements for the Portuguese national team have been stellar as well.
Ronaldo has been fortunate to have had some talented players playing by his side. He has been able to strike up some highly effective partnerships for the Portuguese national side. Some players just understand each other better and operate on the same wavelength on the football field and produce great results.
Ronaldo is as good as they come and his teammates end up just having to play to his strengths in order to get the right results. Without further ado, let's take a look at the 5 best teammates Cristiano Ronaldo has had for Portugal.
5 of Cristiano Ronaldo's best teammates for Portugal
#5 Pauleta
Portuguese striker Pauleta was in the latter years of his career when Cristiano Ronaldo was making his steady rise in the world of football. Ronaldo used to wreak havoc down the flanks during the time he played with Pauleta for Portugal and the duo struck up a good partnership.
Pauleta was a prolific goalscorer who was a mobile centre-forward and packed a lot of pace and agility. He was able to shoot with both feet and was also a serious aerial threat. Naturally, he thrived alongside Cristiano Ronaldo for the short while that they played together.
The duo played a total of 34 games together and combined to score seven goals in that time.
#4 Bernardo Silva
The diminutive Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva is quite technically proficient. After all, if you're a hit with Pep Guardiola, the chances are that you know how to best keep the ball at your feet and find your teammates without much hassle.
Bernardo Silva has been playing alongside Cristiano Ronaldo for a while now. The duo have played a total of 35 matches together for Portugal, combining for seven goals. Ronaldo has played in all positions across the frontline but has, more often than not, operated down the left flank.
Bernardo Silva plays down the right flank and even though the kind of threat the two of them pose is different in nature, when they combine at the front for Portugal, they create a lot of trouble for the opposition.
#3 Joao Moutinho
Veteran midfielder Joao Moutinho has been a mainstay in the Portuguese international squad for more than a decade. The 34-year-old is in fact the player that Cristiano Ronaldo has played alongside the most in his international career.
Moutinho and Cristiano Ronaldo have played a whopping 98 games together. Given how Moutinho is a deep-lying playmaker who orchestrates the play from midfield, their joint-goal participation rate is low but that should take nothing away from how effective they are when they are playing for the same side.
Moutinho understands his teammates very well and has the ability to pick a pass from anywhere on the field. He is also excellent with his set-piece deliveries and corner kicks - which is something Cristiano Ronaldo loves to feed off. The duo have combined for eight goals so far.
#2 Nani
Nani has a style of play that's quite identical to Cristiano Ronaldo's. Both of them used to operate on the wings when they were young and had pace to burn. They were full of tricks and only a handful of players could even think about doing some of the stuff they used to pull off with the ball at their feet.
Nani and Cristiano Ronaldo also enjoyed an extremely successful stint together at Manchester United and both players were at the top of their games during that time.
Though when you mention Nani and Cristiano Ronaldo in the same breath, people tend to think of that legendary solo effort by the latter that had to be chalked off because Nani decided to needlessly head it home while it was already going inside and that's simply not a fair reflection of how effective they both have been together.
Nani and Cristiano Ronaldo have combined to score 10 goals from a total of 75 matches and have won a plethora of trophies together including the Euros and the UEFA Nations League.
#1 Ricardo Quaresma
Ricardo Quaresma is one of the most skilful players of his generation. Though his talent has not fully translated into results on the football field, on his day, Quaresma is a formidable player to come up against.
Quaresma was also a trickster and could weave his way past defenders and whip in delightful balls into the box. Cristiano Ronaldo obviously loves playing alongside him as they complement each other well and play to each other's strengths.
Quaresma is Cristiano Ronaldo's favourite player to link up with and the stats will tell you the same. They have played 53 matches together and have combined to score 13 goals in that time. They have also won the Euros and the UEFA Nations League together.
