Portugal suffers Ronaldo scare as Neuer Returns for Germany
World player of the year, Cristiano Ronaldo limped out of Portugal’s training session on Thursday and left the pitch with an ice-pack on his knee.
The Real Madrid forward, 29, missed two of Portugal’s pre-tournament friendlies with knee and thigh problems and returned in the 5-1 win over the Republic of Ireland.
Portugal’s first match of the World Cup is against Germany on Monday and his Team-mate, Joao Moutinho played down concerns about Ronaldo’s fitness. The Monaco midfielder said: “Ever since he started to train with us, he has been 100% like the rest of us.
“Everything is fine with him but there is some caution, not only with him. Many other players were using ice as well. There is nothing to worry about. The ice is normal after training.”
After leaving his team-mates, the former Manchester United player signed autographs for supporters before watching the rest of the session from the bench.
Ronaldo was hampered by injury problems in the final weeks of the season and missed six of Real’s final 12 matches of the campaign.
The Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) confirmed he was suffering from tendinosis in the region around his left kneecap on 4 June.
Meanwhile, Portugal has an extra thing to worry about as Germany’s first-choice goalkeeper, Manuel Neuer, has recovered from a shoulder injury and will start Monday’s match against Portugal after training with the team on Thursday.
The coach, Joachim Löw, said:“The injury situation is causing me less and less concern, Manuel Neuer took part in training today and he is ready to go on Monday.”
Neuer, Germany’s No1 goalkeeper for the past four years and a pillar of their defence, injured the shoulder in Bayern Munich’s German Cup victory over Borussia Dortmund in May.
The captain, Philipp Lahm, who was struggling with an injured ankle sustained in the same match, has also made good progress and will most likely play as a holding midfielder rather than in the back four.
Worries about Neuer and Lahm had caused concern at Germany’s World Cup training camp. Neuer did not play in the two pre-tournament friendlies, against Cameroon and Armenia, while Lahm, considered one of the world’s best full-backs, played in midfield against Armenia.
