Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson has joked that he may have “got into the head” of Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo after the pair’s touchline spat followed the 40-year-old’s red card.
In the build-up to the World Cup qualifier, Ronaldo accused Hallgrímsson of mind games after the Ireland boss’s own allegation that Ronaldo had “controlled the referee” when these two sides last met. In response, Ronaldo sarcastically told his prematch press conference that he would “try to be a good boy.”
One hour into Thursday’s surprise 2–0 defeat, Ronaldo’s promise went up in smoke after a VAR check found him to have elbowed Dara O’Shea in the back in a fight for position—the indiscretion earned him a red card.
Ronaldo did not leave the pitch quietly, clapping the Irish fans and pretending to cry as he headed to the touchline, where he had more choice words for Hallgrímsson and Ireland’s coaching staff.
Quizzed on the incident, Hallgrímsson laughed: “He complimented me for putting pressure on the referee. It was his action on the pitch that cost him the red card. It had nothing to do with me—unless I got into his head.”
Halgrímsson also confirmed he had not spoken with Ronaldo since the incident, concluding with: “This was just a moment of a little silliness from him, I would say.”
