Cristiano Ronaldo says his dream of winning World Cup has ''ended''
Doha, Dec 11: Cristiano Ronaldo said in a cryptic social media post that his dream of winning the World Cup with Portugal has ended, while stopping short of announcing his retirement from international duty.
The 37-year-old Ronaldo left the field in tears after Portugal lost 1-0 to Morocco in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
In his first comments after the elimination, Ronaldo said Sunday that it was "time to take stock" without saying explicitly if he wants to carry on being available for Portugal after 19 years in the national team.
"There's no point in reacting rashly," Ronaldo wrote on Instagram. "I just want everybody to know that a lot has been said, a lot has been written, a lot has been speculated about, but my dedication to Portugal has never wavered for an instant.
"I've always been just one more (Portuguese) fighting for everyone's goal. I would never turn my back on my teammates or my country."
Ronaldo, who is the all-time leading scorer in men's international soccer with 118 goals, said putting Portugal "on the highest level in the world" was his biggest dream.
"In my five appearances at World Cups over 16 years, always playing alongside great players and supported by millions of Portuguese, I have given my all," he wrote. "I left everything I had on the pitch. I'll never shrink from a battle and I have never given up on that dream.
"Unfortunately, that dream ended yesterday."
Ronaldo said he would now "let everyone draw their own conclusions."
"For now. There's not much else to say. Thank you, Portugal. Thank you, Qatar. The dream was beautiful as long as it lasted."
The next major tournament is the European Championship in 2024. The next World Cup will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico in 2026, by which time Ronaldo will be 41 years old.
Ronaldo is without a club after leaving Manchester United during the World Cup in the wake of an explosive interview before the tournament when he criticized the manager, board and his teammates at the English club.
His only goal at the World Cup was a penalty against Ghana in Portugal's opening group game. He became the first male player to score at five World Cups.
Ronaldo started on the bench for Portugal's games in the last 16 a 6-1 victory over Switzerland and the quarterfinals.
Before the game against Morocco, Portugal coach Fernando Santos denied reports Ronaldo threatened to leave the World Cup after being told he wasn't going to be in the starting lineup against Switzerland.
View this post on Instagram
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Mumbai family deaths: FDA finds no watermelon vendor in area to check for affected stock
Mumbai (PTI): The Food and Drug Administration team probing the cause of death of four members of a family in south Mumbai's JJ Marg area have not been able to zero in on any watermelon vendor in the vicinity to check if the fruit had a role to play in the ill-fated incident, an official said on Thursday.
The Dokadia family, residents of Ghari Mohalla on Ismail Kurte Road, had hosted a get-together of relatives on the night of April 25. At around 1 am, hours after the guests had left, Abdullah Dokadia (40), his wife Nasreen (35), and daughters Ayesha (16) and Zaineb (13) ate pieces of a watermelon.
They suffered severe bouts of vomiting and diarrhoea in the early hours of April 26 and were rushed to a local hospital before being referred to the government-run J J Hospital where all four died during treatment.
"The FDA team visited the house of Dokadia and collected samples of chicken pulao and watermelon pieces. After two days, the leftover chicken pulao had developed fungus growth. The team also tried to locate watermelon vendors to check for any affected lots," he said.
But no vendors were found in the area for the past two days, preventing the FDA team from getting samples, the official added.
The FDA has requested the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) to share the report on the food samples collected by them, he added.
A senior Mumbai police official said the force is waiting for FSL reports in the case, adding that questions on presence of sedatives etc in the fruit could be answered only then.
The statements of the kin of the deceased are being recorded to ascertain if it is a case of mass suicide, and it is being checked if the Dokadia family were in debt or distressed over some issue, the police official said.
