Nani sabotages Cristiano Ronaldo's 'greatest goal'
Table of Contents
 |
The moment came after Ronaldo produced a piece of individual brilliance.
The Portugal captain brilliantly skipped past Gerard Piqué with a clever drag-back before delicately lifting the ball over goalkeeper Iker Casillas.
With the finish already destined for the net, Nani leapt in to head the ball over the line.
Instead of celebrating a spectacular goal, Portugal were punished by the assistant referee's flag.
Nani had strayed into an offside position before making contact with the ball, meaning Ronaldo's effort was disallowed despite the ball appearing certain to cross the line unaided.
The decision immediately sparked frustration, with Ronaldo visibly angered after seeing what looked set to be a memorable strike wiped from the scoresheet.
Speaking after the match, Ronaldo questioned both the decision and his recurring misfortune with disallowed goals for Portugal.
I don't understand, even a blind man could see it was a goal, the ball was half a metre into the net.The forward also suggested it was not the first time one of his finest international goals had been erased.
I don't know if it's a coincidence or not but my best goals with the national team are being disallowed. I remember an overhead kick in the Bessa stadium which wasn't given.Although Nani's touch may have been instinctive, it ultimately proved costly. Had he left the ball alone, Ronaldo's audacious chip would almost certainly have counted and would likely have gone down as one of the standout goals of his Portugal career.
Instead, the incident remains one of football's most memorable examples of a goal being denied by an avoidable act of goal-poaching from a team-mate.
