Ronaldo Misses Twice as Congo DR Hold Portugal in Houston
Two efforts inside the box, two shakes of the head. That was the story of Cristiano Ronaldo’s evening at NRG Stadium, where his Portugal side let a lead slip and settled for a 1-1 draw against a Congo DR team playing only its second ever World Cup match.
This was supposed to be routine. Instead, Ronaldo became the headline for the wrong reasons, missing from eleven yards in the 68th minute and again from ten yards six minutes later, both efforts drifting wide of the right post with the goal at his mercy.
Portugal beat Congo DR, wait, no. Portugal drew with Congo DR 1-1 at NRG Stadium in Houston on June 17, 2026, in their Group K opener at the 2026 World Cup. Joao Neves headed Portugal in front in the sixth minute, Yoane Wissa equalized with a header in second-half stoppage time of the first half, and neither side could find a winner despite Ronaldo’s two glaring misses in the second period.
Here is the direct answer for anyone who only wants the headline facts: Neves scored in the sixth minute off a Pedro Neto cross, Wissa equalized in the 45th plus fifth minute from an Arthur Masuaku delivery, and Ronaldo missed two clear chances late on that would have won the match for Portugal.
The 41-year-old started the match as the oldest outfield player in World Cup history, breaking the record set by Canada’s Atiba Hutchinson four years ago. He also became just the second man, alongside Lionel Messi, to appear at six World Cups. The numbers should have told a story of history made. Instead they told a story of history denied, twice, in the space of six minutes.
His first chance came in the 68th minute. Francisco Conceicao, on for Bernardo Silva at the break, slipped a pass into the right side of the box and Ronaldo arrived at the near post with the goal gaping. He shot first time from close range and steered it just past the post. The chance carried 0.24 expected goals, the kind of opportunity a player of his pedigree converts more often than not.
Six minutes later he was there again. Another low ball from Conceicao found him in the same area, ten yards out, and again the finish drifted wide right. This one carried 0.18 xG. Two chances, both inside the box, both off his favored side, both missed. Ronaldo shook his head after each one, and for a man chasing a record no other player has touched, the frustration was plain to see.
Here is the thing Ronaldo was not actually the problem with this Portugal performance. He took three shots, more than anyone else on the pitch, and generated 0.46 xG, the highest figure of any player in the match. The issue was everyone around him. Portugal racked up 75 percent possession and 724 accurate passes, yet managed only one shot on target across ninety minutes plus stoppage time. Bruno Fernandes had four attempts and not one on frame. Vitinha completed 121 passes and registered zero shots.
That is not a finishing problem confined to one player. That is a team that moved the ball well and did almost nothing dangerous with it.
Roberto Martinez turned to his bench in search of an answer, sending on Rafael Leao, Goncalo Ramos and Nelson Semedo in the final half hour. None of it changed the picture. Fernandes drilled a left-footed effort just wide in the 90th minute, the last meaningful chance of the night, and the board stayed at 1-1.
Congo DR, by contrast, were content to sit deep, soak up pressure and break with purpose. Cedric Bakambu rattled the post, Steve Kapuadi headed wide, and goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi was barely tested despite facing eight shots, because so few of them carried any real threat.
Ronaldo will have other nights at this tournament, and likely other chances like the two he spurned in Houston. What he cannot get back is this one. At 41, with the record for most World Cup appearances and most tournaments scored in both still open to him, time is not an opponent he can dribble past. The chances were there. The finish was not. For a player who has built a career on ruthless conversion, missing twice in the same six-minute spell against a team making just its second World Cup appearance is the kind of detail that will sting longer than the scoreline suggests.