Cristiano Ronaldo now wears a goatee beard in Russia.The usually smooth and clean shaven Portugal and Madrid superstar said he will keep the beard for goodluck.
And the beard has really been like a charm for the Portuguese as he had scored all the four goals that had kept Portugal on course for the World Cup last 16.
The Real Madrid superstar sported his new look for the Morocco clash in Moscow, with team-mate Cedric Soares admitting Ronaldo will keep the beard for good luck.
Asked about Ronaldo’s beard, Southampton defender Cedric said: “It’s just an option – maybe he wanted to have it like mine, as I have one as well and maybe it’s bringing him some luck.
“So I hope he keeps it. If you look at our squad, a lot of us have beards.
“I know why I have it – I started in England and now I don’t want to take it off because it’s bringing me and us some luck.”
Ronaldo revealed the reason for the beard after the win over Morocco.
“The goatee?” said Ronaldo. “It’s a joke I had with Ricardo Quaresma ‘We were in the sauna and I started to shave and I left the goatee. ‘I said if I score I would leave it for the rest of the tournament, so it stays.’”
West Ham defender Jose Fonte echoed Portugal team-mate Cedric with a similarly glowing tribute to Ronaldo after his latest goal-scoring display.
“He’s relentless, he’s just relentless,” said Fonte. “He’s a very hard-working player, he’s always in training practicing finishing, practicing free-kicks, practicing everything.
“He takes care of himself, he takes care of his body and he’s always ready, that’s him.
“He’s changed his mentality since he was at Manchester United to what he is now. He’s a goalscorer now, he’s a machine scoring goals.
“He’s a great leader and a great example to everyone, so we are just blessed to have him.
With Ronaldo having scored all four of Portugal’s goals here in Russia, Fernando Santos’s side have been accused of being too reliant on the 33-year-old.
But Cedric insisted there was no shame in relying – in his opinion – on the best player in the world to produce moments of brilliance and Portugal will continue to look to Ronaldo to inspire them.
*The Mirror
