We Want to Defeat Armenia for Ronaldo as Well, Says Roberto Martinez

The head coach of the Portugal national team, Roberto Martinez, spoke about the red card received by team captain Cristiano Ronaldo following a 0-2 loss to Ireland in the fifth round of the European qualification for the 2026 World Cup, as well as the upcoming match against Armenia.

“In football, the hardest thing is to score a goal. We also played against Armenia, which is a team that plays in a low defensive block, and we scored 5 goals against them. We started the game very poorly against Ireland; we were missing Pedro Neto, Nuno Mendes, and Bruno Fernandes—players with whom we have already formed patterns. Cristiano's red card is mainly due to the fact that he plays with great passion and gets frustrated when he does not win. And that's what we want from all players,” Martinez's words are quoted by the Portuguese outlet A Bola.

The match between Portugal and Armenia will take place on November 16 at the Dragão Stadium in Porto, Portugal, starting at 18:00 Yerevan time.