Ronaldo Gets the Soft-Touch Treatment as Portugal Stumble; Plus the Media's Greatest Hits

When "Brutal" Means Surprisingly Reasonable

Cristiano Ronaldo has found himself on the receiving end of words from a Portugal teammate, though the actual comments turn out to be considerably more measured than the accompanying headlines suggest. João Neves offered this assessment: "We know what Cristiano has done for us, for our national team, and for the world of football. But at this moment, he and we know that he is no different. He is just another player here to help. He is no different from the others. He is here to contribute, just like all of us."

That's apparently the definition of being "blasted" and "brutally taken down" in certain quarters of the media. Hardly the stuff of seismic fallouts, then.

The Full-Back Furore That Isn't

Charlie Wyett's column in The Sun spent considerable energy fretting about England's defensive arrangements, suggesting that Thomas Tuchel should have recruited Arsenal's back four wholesale. Naturally, this conveniently glosses over the fact that said ideal defence contains precisely zero "natural full-backs" by his own logic.

The assertion that Nico O'Reilly represents some sort of makeshift solution also rather ignores that Pep Guardiola deploys him as Manchester City's starting left-back without apparent crisis. When Guardiola reckons you're fit for purpose in that role, it's probably safe to assume you're fit for purpose.

As for Luke Shaw's omission from the squad—Wyett simultaneously calls it "ridiculous" whilst acknowledging it wasn't surprising given Shaw hasn't featured for England since Euro 2024. That's not quite the contradiction-free argument it purports to be.

The Cole Palmer Conundrum

The Sun's characterisation of Cole Palmer as "humble" for flying with budget carrier Jet2 raises an interesting question. Years earlier, the same outlet had rather different language for Raheem Sterling when he flew the same airline, describing him as "penny pinching" and suggesting he'd "slummed it" despite earning £200,000 weekly.

One wonders what the meaningful distinction might be.

Breaking the Rules That Don't Exist

BBC Match of the Day host Mark Chapman apparently committed an "unwritten MOTD rule" violation when, following Czechia's draw with South Africa, he offered: "Sometimes a game does not deserve a really clever closing link. Goodbye."

The transgression? He failed to deliver a clever closing link, which The Sun insists is an "unwritten rule in the BBC." Except that closing remark was, objectively, a clever link. And the notion that good broadcasting constitutes an "unwritten rule" rather than, say, basic professional standards, is doing some heavy lifting.

The Hayes Blackboard Saga

Emma Hayes conducting tactical analysis on a "tiny blackboard" on what's been described as a "little kitchen" set has sparked online debate. The language choice—that she was "forced" to do so—adds a particular flourish to what appears to be a straightforward production setup decision.