Cristiano Ronaldo’s FIFA World Cup 2018 record is controversial - Here’s why | Football News - Hindustan Times
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Cristiano Ronaldo’s FIFA World Cup 2018 record is controversial - Here’s why

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | ByShayne Dias
Jun 16, 2018 06:01 PM IST

Cristiano Ronaldo was praised for becoming the first man to score in eight consecutive international tournaments after his hat-trick vs Spain in their FIFA World Cup 2018 match. However, Ghana international Asamoah Gyan achieved this feat all the way back in 2015.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s hat-trick against Spain in Portugal’s opening Group B match in the FIFA World Cup 2018 on Friday night earned him plaudits from fans and pundits alike.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored for the eighth consecutive international tournament, but Asamoah Gyan is not impressed with the praise the Portuguese is receiving.(AFP)
Cristiano Ronaldo scored for the eighth consecutive international tournament, but Asamoah Gyan is not impressed with the praise the Portuguese is receiving.(AFP)

Not only did his hat-trick salvage a point for Portugal in the thrilling game, it was reported that his goals made him the first player to score in eight consecutive international tournaments.

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However, Ronaldo is not the first man to achieve this feat.

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Ghana national football team skipper Asamoah Gyan, who has played for Sunderland and Udinese, among others, in his club career, was the first player to reach the mark, in 2015.

Gyan has, in fact, scored at least once in nine consecutive tournaments – from FIFA World Cup 2006 to 2017 Africa Cup of Nations, meaning he stands ahead of Ronaldo.

GYAN MIFFED

Given the nature of his achievement, it was understandable that Gyan was miffed that Ronaldo was being credited for doing something that had already been done.

“People disregard my achievements in the World Cup history but I want the whole world to know that I have not been given the fair shake but records will remain forever,” he wrote on Twitter.

Granted Gyan’s stature as a player does not match Ronaldo’s. It also doesn’t help that the Ghanaian is best remembered by football fans for the wrong reasons.

He was in fine form in the 2010 World Cup but his defining moment of the tournament came when he missed a crucial penalty against Uruguay in the quarter-final, which was awarded for a cynical handling on the goal-line by Luis Suaraz. Ghana eventually lost that game.

Gyan failed in the 2012 African Cup of Nations semi-final as well, missing a penalty versus Zambia that saw him hounded by the media and on social media, to a point he took a break from playing for Black Stars, as the Ghana team is known.

However, Gyan still remains a key player for Ghana and has scored 51 goals in 105 games.

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