Cristiano Ronaldo pictured celebrating after Joao Felix put Portugal 2-1 up against Ghana

After helping Portugal to a World Cup opening victory over Ghana, Cristiano Ronaldo has broken his silence on the subject of his departure from Manchester United. Portugal won the match 3-2. On Tuesday, Manchester United issued a statement in which they confirmed the player, who is 37 years old, had voluntarily parted ways with the club.

Ronaldo's final act as a Manchester United player was giving an explosive interview to Piers Morgan, in which he ripped into Erik ten Hag, the Glazers, and younger teammates. The leaders of the club have been tasked with finding a replacement for the player who scored the most goals during the previous campaign during the transfer window that will open in January.

His situation at the Theatre of Dreams had been the primary topic of conversation among members of Portugal's squad prior to the competition. There were discussions that were very similar to the ones that were held on the terraces at Old Trafford, and some people were questioning Ronaldo's position for his country. The veteran player only had two goals in his previous nine international appearances, and he didn't play for the first team during the 2022–2023 season. This was not ideal preparation for a World Cup, but he still managed to perform well on the biggest stage of them all.

Despite the fact that Ronaldo was the team captain, he had avoided all of his obligations to the media up until this point. Despite this, the five-time winner of the Ballon d'Or, who scored Portugal's first goal from the penalty spot, is considered to have "closed the chapter" on his career with Manchester United after their opening-game victory.

Post-game, when asked about the match, Ronaldo said, "This was a beautiful moment... my fifth World Cup." "We triumphed, and our run of victories began with a very significant triumph. We are aware that the first match is extremely important. But also a record for the entire world. The first player in World Cup history to score in all five tournaments. That fills me with immense pride.

"The most significant accomplishment is that we prevailed. This chapter was completed during the course of a week (with United). The previous chapter has been finished. We aimed to get off to a good start. We came out on top, and I was able to contribute to the success of our team; everything else is irrelevant."