Cristiano Ronaldo: Owen Hargreaves reveals Manchester United story to rubbish claims Portugal star is 'selfish' before sixth World Cup
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By Ben Grounds
Updated 03/06/2026 at 19:33 GMT+1
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Owen Hargreaves has launched a defence of Cristiano Ronaldo's inclusion in Portugal's FIFA World Cup squad, insisting the selfish streak often associated with the forward never came at the expense of the team's collective ambitions.
'Not as selfish as people make out' - Hargreaves recalls interesting Ronaldo story
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Hargreaves was joined by Martin Keown, Ally McCoist, Julien Laurens and Darren Fletcher on The Breakdown to preview this summer's World Cup, with discussion quickly turning to Ronaldo's longevity and continuing importance to Portugal.
The 2026 tournament is set to add another chapter to the 41-year-old's enduring World Cup story, a journey that began in Germany in 2006 and has since taken him through South Africa, Brazil, Russia and Qatar.
It is a career that has delivered almost every major honour in the game but the World Cup remains the one prize that has consistently eluded him.
When asked to assess the leading contenders for the tournament, McCoist highlighted Portugal as potential champions but questioned whether Ronaldo's presence remains an asset.
"I think they're well worth a mention," McCoist said. "I genuinely think they could win it. Would their chances be better without Ronaldo? I think it would. I genuinely think it would."
Hargreaves immediately pushed back.
"Everybody says that," he said. "But who's a better goalscorer than him? It's easy to say to leave him out. But actually there's no clear replacement for him. There isn't, is there? No."
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McCoist remained unconvinced, responding: "You're never going to replace goals or the attitude, but you might be able to replace the energy. That's my point."
For Ronaldo, the World Cup remains unfinished business. His closest brush with glory came in 2006, when Portugal reached the semi-finals before falling to France.
Since then, his World Cup record has featured two last-16 exits, a quarter-final defeat and a disappointing group-stage elimination in Brazil in 2014.
Across five tournaments, he has played 22 matches and scored eight goals - impressive figures by most standards, but a return that has declined in recent World Cups - scoring just once, from the penalty spot, in Qatar.
Laurens sided with McCoist, arguing that Portugal's attack can become unbalanced when Ronaldo is not contributing goals.
"If he doesn't score, they play with 10 men. Don't forget, he didn't score [from open play at] the Euros or the last World Cup, so it's [almost] two tournaments in a row where he didn't score," said Laurens.
Fletcher also questioned whether Portugal's evolution is being slowed by their continued reliance on their talismanic captain.
"He wants the team to play through him, and that can be dangerous, because that baton needs to be passed on now to other people," said Fletcher.
Despite those concerns, Portugal coach Roberto Martinez has consistently pointed to Ronaldo's continued influence both on and off the pitch.
The statistics remain compelling: 25 goals in 30 appearances under the Spaniard, a scoring rate superior to that achieved under any of his previous national team managers.
As Portugal prepare for a group featuring the Democratic Republic of Congo, tournament debutants Uzbekistan and Colombia, Ronaldo once again finds himself chasing the one prize that has always remained just beyond reach.
Keown believes Ronaldo's stature in the game has left successive managers in a position where only the player himself can decide when his international career should end.
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Martinez praises 'exemplary' Ronaldo ahead of World Cup
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"There's a selfishness to a striker, and you have to be the one who says, 'Maybe it's time to come off.' He has to make an adjustment because it can be too much about him. It's about the team," said Keown.
However, when the discussion turned to whether Ronaldo's refusal to step aside for Portugal's emerging generation could be viewed as selfish, Hargreaves recalled a story from their time together at Manchester United that challenged that perception.
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"This is true story," the former England midfielder began. "When we won the league, my first year at United, I scored a free-kick in about April time, and Cristiano and I were over the ball, and everybody thought Cristiano was going to take it, and I took it and scored.
"We got to the Champions League final to play Chelsea, and we were practising free-kicks. I hit nine out of 10 over the wall into the top corner, and Edwin van der Sar came to me and said, 'If we get a free-kick in the final game, you've got to take it'. I said, 'I can't take it off Cristiano. No chance'.
"Anyway, Cristiano walks over to me. Nobody hears him. He says, 'If we get a free kick, it's yours', because he knew I could maybe take it better to help us win the game. My point is, everyone thinks he's selfish. He's not, actually. He wants to win.
"He'll delegate. He's not as selfish as people make out, and the reason he's got to the level that he did, why? It's because he's a little bit selfish."
Keown: Who is England's World Cup maverick?
Attention then turned to Thomas Tuchel's 26-man England squad, which has divided opinion following the omissions of both Phil Foden and Cole Palmer.
With Eberechi Eze, Morgan Rogers and Jude Bellingham likely to compete for a role behind Harry Kane, Keown admitted he would still have found room for Palmer because of his ability to produce moments of inspiration.
Having listened to Tuchel's explanation, Keown said: "I understand the rationale, and he explained himself well, but the World Cup for me is all about that kind of maverick player.
"When we first saw Pele back in the day, when we saw Johan Cruyff, then we saw Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, I would have found space for Palmer to be in the group.
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Should Tuchel have picked 'maverick' Palmer for World Cup squad?
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"I get it that he hasn't had a great season. I'm a little bit concerned John Stones has only played four games for Man City, and he gets into the squad. He's probably played more games for England than he has for his club side.
"So there's a couple of decisions that go against the grain, but it's firm leadership, 100%. This is my team, this is what I want. I would have had Harry Maguire in, because he's been in virtually every team of the competition in recent years, and I've had him in.
"With Dan Burn, it seems like this leadership group thing is just as important as what you do on the pitch, and I'm not completely with that, but maybe that's the modern day dressing room.
"It's a functional team, but we're relying on one striker, I feel, in Harry Kane, so a lot's got to go well for us."
Are England following Arsenal's blueprint?
While Maguire has been left at home, many of Tuchel's selections share a similar physical profile to the Arsenal side that has just ended its 22-year wait for the Premier League title.
With set-pieces playing such a significant role in Mikel Arteta's success, could Tuchel be looking to adopt elements of the same blueprint with England?
"I think he's going for size," Hargreaves admitted. "We've only probably got three players in there probably under six foot. Kobbie Mainoo, Bukayo Saka and Reece James.
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‘Total belief’ – Tuchel full of confidence in England squad
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"Everybody else... you think about Anthony Gordon, Marcus Rashford, Ivan Toney, Harry Kane, Oli Watkins, Noni Madueke. Big fellas. Morgan Rogers, Jude Bellingham, Declan Rice.
"Everybody's above six foot, so I think he's going for big, strong athletes. I think he knows we can't out-football Spain.
"If we're going to win it, we're going to win it on the counter; I think that's kind of his blueprint. I just think Thomas has looked at what Arsenal's done and thought, 'Okay, we can take a bit of that.'"
Laurens: France have an Olise selection dilemma
France enter the tournament with an enviable array of attacking talent, despite Liverpool striker Hugo Ekitike being ruled out through injury.
Desire Doue and Bradley Barcola are contenders to replace him on the left flank, while Rayan Cherki must compete for opportunities in a squad featuring Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele.
Michael Olise, meanwhile, has emerged as one of Europe's outstanding performers at Bayern Munich. Didier Deschamps appears ready to deploy him in a central role, a move Laurens believes is unnecessary.
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Michael Olise (right) is set to play centrally for France
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"Olise is going to play centrally, and I would think the guy is so good in his position at club level, why would you move him to a different position at international level? Just leave him there," said Laurens.
"He's got all his bearings, he's got so used to play with the touchline, why would you move him centrally?
"But it's working and I think he's that great that he can play well anywhere. But he feels more comfortable on the right."
At 24, Olise continues to develop, but his rise since joining Bayern from Crystal Palace has been remarkable.
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'STUNNING!' – Brilliant Olise scores superb equaliser
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This week, he was voted by his peers ahead of RB Leipzig star Yan Diomande, Hamburg defender Luka Vuskovic and Kane as the Bundesliga Player of the Season after scoring 15 goals and providing 19 assists in just 32 league appearances.
While Deschamps has more natural No. 10s at his disposal, Laurens believes the decision underlines the trust the France manager places in Olise's versatility.
Hargreaves also saw the logic.
"If he plays central, he's got more pictures. He can play left, he can play in behind, he can play short, he can play one-two. On the right, I think his pictures are limited to, 'I'm coming in on my left'," said Hargreaves.
"So I think he probably thinks he gives him more freedom to see more."
McCoist: Gannon-Doak offers something different
Scotland return to the World Cup for the first time since 1998 with a clear objective: to finally break their major tournament ceiling and reach the knockout stages for the first time in their history.
Driven by the unwavering support of the Tartan Army, Steve Clarke's side arrives hoping to end decades of frustration after a succession of agonising near-misses on the major tournament stage.
Clarke will also be eager to banish memories of a disappointing Euro 2024 campaign, where Scotland failed to make the impact many had hoped for.
With expectation growing and thousands of supporters set to follow the team across North America, Scotland travel with renewed belief that this could finally be the tournament where history is made.
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Billy Gilmour was ruled out through injury in a cruel blow for Scotland
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Asked who could emerge as Scotland's breakthrough star, McCoist highlighted Ben Gannon-Doak.
"We've got a good squad, we've got a good group of boys that will work their socks off. We don't have a superstar, of course we don't. I mean, Scott McTominay's been brilliant for us, John McGinn's been brilliant for us, of course he has, but we don't have an out-and-out superstar," said McCoist.
"What Stevie Clarke's managed to do, he's got a group together of 14, 15 solid boys that have managed to get us over the line, and that'll be our success. Looking at our real qualities in the middle of the park, whether it's McTominay, McGinn, Ryan Christie.
"I think we've got some good, good players in there. The one difference that we have got, and we've not had it for a good number of years now, and this fella's not been playing regularly either, is Ben Gannon-Doak.
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Ally McCoist is excited to see Ben Gannon-Doak at the World Cup
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"The one thing he's got is pace, and he can go by a full-back, he can go by a player. We've not had that in a long, long time.
"You look at all the top teams, not just internationally, all the top teams in European football, they've got players in wide areas that can do something different. He can do that.
"The Euros [in Germany in 2024] were so disappointing. The Hungary game was brutal. We never laid a glove, and they were nearly as bad, to be quite honest. We've got guys now that are comfortable on the ball, honest defenders but we lack a bit of quality in forward areas.
"Clarke's done an amazing job. He's got us to the last two Euros, he's got us to the World Cup, but we've got to make an impact. We've got to do something that makes us all talk about Scotland for a reason. We should win our opening game, which gives you a great chance."
Prediction time: Who wins the World Cup?
As Brazil departed for North America in pursuit of a sixth World Cup title, the spotlight inevitably fell on Carlo Ancelotti's side and their prospects of ending a 24-year wait for global glory.
Much of the discussion in the build-up to the tournament has centred on the inclusion of Neymar Jr., while Ancelotti has spent more than a year preparing for the challenge after taking charge in May of 2025.
Brazil have broken with tradition by appointing a foreign coach, but Hargreaves believes the five-time champions remain among the strongest contenders.
"Don't sleep on Brazil," he said.
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Brazil's plane receives a water salute upon arriving in the United States
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"You could argue the best centre-back partnership, is there one better than Marquinhos and Gabriel? With Alisson? With Carlo, with Alisson, with those two, and then you've got Vinicius Jr., Raphinha.
"The only issue I think Brazil have is the full-backs. You really think back to Cafu and Roberto Carlos, and what they used to have. They don't have that right now."
When it came to final predictions, the panel overwhelmingly backed France.
McCoist: France.
Laurens: France.
Keown: I think France.
Hargreaves: I'm gonna go France.
Fletcher: Argentina for me. Back-to-back.
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