Rio Ferdinand calls out people suggesting Cristiano Ronaldo was 'lucky' to score for Portugal against Spain in Nations League final

Rio Ferdinand has criticized fans for suggesting that Cristiano Ronaldo was 'lucky' to score against Spain in the Nations League final on Sunday (June 8). The former pointed out that the latter is a proven goalscorer who continually makes an effort in the final third to get on the scoresheet.

Portugal claimed a second UEFA Nations League title after a 5-3 shootout win over the reigning European Champions. Martin Zubimendi gave La Roja the lead in the 21st minute, but his strike was canceled out by a beautiful effort from Nuno Mendes (26').

Spain went ahead again just before halftime through Mikel Oyarzabal (45'), before Ronaldo restored for his side again in the 61st minute. The 40-year-old pounced on a loose ball inside the box, beating Unai Simon with a shot into the middle of the net. However, Ronaldo watched from the sidelines as his side won the shootout after being forced out of the game in the 88th minute with an injury.

Speaking in a recent episode of his Rio Ferdinand Present podcast, Ferdinand called out those who claimed that the Al-Nassr superstar was lucky to find the net in the Nations League final. He stated that Ronaldo has scored over 900 goals, and this shouldn't be termed as being lucky.

Ferdinand lauded Ronaldo's hunger to always get on the scoresheet. He also pointed out that the Portugal captain scored in the semifinal against Germany and has been banging in goals for Al-Nassr.

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Cristiano Ronaldo finished as runner-up behind Sweden's Viktor Gyokeres (nine goals) in the 2025 Nations League scorers chart. In nine outings at the tournament, the Portuguese recorded eight goals and an assist. With 138 goals and 45 assists in 221 games, Ronaldo is the leading goalscorer in men's international football.

How many goals did Cristiano Ronaldo score in the 2024-25 season?

Cristiano Ronaldo proved his worth as one of football's most proficient forwards in the 2024-25 season. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner bagged an impressive 35 goals and four assists in 41 matches across competitions for Al-Nassr.

Ronaldo's 25 goals in the league saw him beat the likes of Ivan Toney (23) and Karim Benzema (21) to the Saudi Pro League Golden Boot, helping the Knights of Najd to a third-place finish in the standings. His eight goals in eight AFC Champions League matches also propelled the club to the semifinals of the competition, where they lost 3-2 to Kawasaki Frontale.

Overall, Cristiano Ronaldo has registered 93 goals and 19 assists in 105 appearances for Al-Nassr.

About the author

Okenna is an football journalist at Sportskeeda. He has previously worked as a radio presenter at Green FM Umuahia for 4 years, and as a writer at Opera News Hub Nigeria for around 2 years. As a successful modus operandi, he strictly sticks to publishing guidelines, double checks facts while writing, pays very close attention to details and prides himself on picking complex topics to write on.

A Chelsea fan, Okenna had his first tryst with Blues in 2006, after fellow countryman John Mikel Obi joined the west London club. He was immediately drawn to the brilliance of players like Frank Lampard, Joe Cole, John Terry and Didier Drogba.

Okenna is a huge fan of Lionel Messi for his exceptional talent. He also admires Jose Mourinho for his achievements with various clubs which proves he's a tactical and disciplined manger as well as a serial winner.

Some of Okenna’s prospective career landmarks include working as an international journalist and covering a FIFA World Cup game live from the stadium. When not writing, he loves watching, movies and reading books.

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Edited by Yash Singh