"He goes for his own success" - Ex-Dutch international believes Portugal are better without Cristiano Ronaldo

Former Dutch international Youri Mulder recently claimed that Portugal are a better team without Cristiano Ronaldo in their ranks. The comment came after Portugal smashed Luxembourg 9-0 in their latest UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier on September 11.

Ronaldo missed the most recent clash after picking up a yellow card against Slovakia. Roberto Martinez's side, however, brushed aside Luxembourg as they put together a magnificent team performance.

Speaking on the display, Mulder told Ziggosport (via Voetball Netherlands):

"This is the contender for the European Championship. Bernardo Silva, João Félix, Gonçalo Ramos, the list goes on. Then you have that boy from Manchester City at the back, Rúben Dias, also fantastic. I still forget Rafael Leão. They're all stars."

Mulder was then asked whether Cristiano Ronaldo's absence was a blessing in disguise for the 2016 European champions. He replied:

"The attention is always focused on him, but I already thought at the European Championship: that team is done. They are stronger without him, they feel it. Even if you just look at the pressure. Ronaldo doesn't do that anymore. He goes for his own success. He is the leader, but gets all the attention. That can be disturbing."

Ronaldo, however, has been in good form during the Euro 2024 qualifiers. He has scored five goals in five games so far. Apart from that, the 38-year-old has also produced the goods for Al-Nassr, scoring 12 and setting up four goals in 10 matches for the Saudi Pro League club.

Former Manchester United assistant coach sheds light on Cristiano Ronaldo's second spell at the club

Former Manchester United assistant coach Mike Phelan recently spoke about Cristiano Ronaldo's second spell at the club. Ronaldo re-joined in the summer of 2021 after leaving Juventus.

Phelan said that Ronaldo wanted elevated standards in training, which resulted in some teammates not responding to the Portuguese forward. Speaking on the matter, Phelan said (via Mirror):

"I liked it because he didn't want his standards to drop, he wanted other people's standards to come up. And sometimes you lose a few people along the way when that happens. I remember certain times when he pushed and pushed hard, and he didn't get much reaction or much response. And there was frustration."

Cristiano Ronaldo has been a tremendous professional throughout his career. Hence, his being demanding of his teammates shouldn't come as a surprise. After all, Ronaldo's mentality is one of his strongest aspects of his game and is what made him become one of the greatest footballers of all time.