“Without him, Ronaldo is nothing” - Fans claim 25-year-old is best player for Portugal despite Cristiano Ronaldo goal vs Poland

Fans have showered praise on Portugal attacker Rafael Leao as being more important to the team than Cristiano Ronaldo following his performance in the 3-1 win over Poland on Saturday (October 12). The AC Milan man set up his captain to score the second goal of the game to put the Selecao 2-0 up on the night.

Ronaldo and Portugal struggled at Euro 2024, crashing out at the quarter-final stage, with the forward failing to find the net in the tournament. Their form since the tournament has been nothing short of impressive, though, with Ronaldo scoring in wins over Croatia and Scotland.

Portugal boss Roberto Martinez started Leao in attack alongside Ronaldo as he looks for a third successive UEFA Nations League win. The pairing worked well for the game's second goal, as Leao set up the 39-year-old following a mazy run in the 37th minute.

Fans were impressed by the work done by the 25-year-old in creating the goal and took to X to share their thoughts, with one tweeting:

"Without Leao, Ronaldo is nothing"

A fan asked for Leao to get his due credit for the work he did leading to Ronaldo's goal.

"No disrespect to Ronaldo but Leao deserves more credit for the run, dribble and shot", one wrote.

Another shared the same sentiment, jokingly referring to Cristiano Ronaldo as a 'tap in queen'.

"Glad you are finally giving credit to the right person, not the tap in queen", they posted.

One pointed out that Rafael Leao did most of the work for Ronaldo's goal.

"Leo was the major man there tbh", they wrote.

A fan declared the AC Milan man as Portugal's best player.

"Rafael leao is the best player in this team", they posted.

Another referred to Leao as 'underrated'.

"He's so underrated", they wrote.

One fan had praise for the Portugal ace.

"Leao is too good", they wrote.

Rafael Leao created his side's second goal after a trademark surging run through the heart of the Polish team, which ended with his shot hitting the woodwork. Cristiano Ronaldo was on hand to slot home the rebound.

Leao was on the pitch for 64 minutes and completed 86% of his dribbles, making two defensive actions and a recovery. He won seven of 11 duels contested and put on a battling display before being replaced by Francisco Trincao.

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Cristiano Ronaldo guides Portugal to win over Poland

Cristiano Ronaldo took his tally for club and country this season to 11 goals as he scored to help Portugal beat Poland. A Selecao picked up a third successive win to start their UEFA Nations League campaign.

Bernardo Silva opened the scoring after 26 minutes with a volley, which was teed up by a cushioned header from Bruno Fernandes. Ronaldo doubled their lead 11 minutes later, reacting quickly to fire home after Leao's initial shot had struck the post.

Poland threatened briefly when Piotr Zielinski pulled one back for them in the 78th minute to set up a tense finale. Portugal, though, sealed the win in the 88th minute when a Nuno Mendes cross was turned into his own net by Jan Bednarek.