Ronaldo’s Message Stumps Ibrahimovic: “Don’t Know Why He Said That”

Cristiano Ronaldo roared into the camera, “I am back,” after scoring a brace in Portugal’s 5-0 win over Uzbekistan in their FIFA World Cup Group K match on Tuesday. Ronaldo, who failed to score in Portugal’s 1-1 draw against DR Congo in their previous game, had been severely criticised for his lacklustre show in the opener. Ronaldo’s “I am back” declaration, however, left former Sweden and Barcelona striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic quite baffled, prompting a quirky reply from him.

“I’m back,” Ronaldo said directly into the television camera as he produced a Man of the Match performance against Uzbekistan. Sitting in the Fox Sports studio, Ibrahimovic said Portugal’s 5-0 win over Uzbekistan was no surprise to him, considering the gap in quality between the two sides.

However, he did express surprise over Ronaldo’s comments after scoring his brace.

“It was a game to score. It was a game for Portugal to score a lot of goals. And regarding his message, I thought he never left. I don’t know why he says ‘I’m back,'” Ibrahimovic said after the match.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic on Ronaldo saying “I’m back” after scoring vs Uzbekistan:

“I thought he said he never left. I don’t know why he was yelling I’m back.” pic.twitter.com/4oYc6sZGTG

— AM(@AbsoluteMxssi) June 23, 2026

Speaking after the game, Ronaldo addressed questions about a potential face-off with his long-time rival, Argentine legend Lionel Messi, calling the prospect “awesome” while stressing that his immediate focus remained on Portugal’s progress in the tournament.

“I don’t know how to answer that. But, well, it would be awesome. The most important thing was today, winning to advance, and being ready for what’s next … The main goal was to advance from the group stage, and we did it,” Ronaldo said.

The 41-year-old emphasised that qualification from the group stage was the main target and noted that Portugal had achieved it with a convincing performance.

Ronaldo also acknowledged a challenging build-up to the match, pointing to intense public scrutiny of both the players and head coach Roberto Martinez. He said criticism is part of his long career, noting that opinions swing between praise and doubt depending on results.

“It was a very tough and difficult week, with public opinion being very harsh on all the players, especially on me and the coach [Roberto Martinez],” Ronaldo said.

“But I don’t mind. I’ve been in this profession for 23 years now, and whenever things go well, ‘Cristiano is doing great,’ but when they go badly, ‘Cristiano is retired, he’s too old.’ It will always be like that. But we responded well today,” the great footballer added.

With ANI inputs