Cristiano Ronaldo

He added another goal which was his 150th goal for Real Madrid in all competitions in 149 matches played. This goal made him the 10th highest scorer for Real Madrid in all competitions. Ronaldo was substituted at the 63rd minute by team mate Gonzalo Higuain, due to a minor thigh injury.

Unhappy claim After the match, Ronaldo claimed that he was unhappy with a "professional issue" after he refused to celebrate his 149th and 150th goals for the club. Several of his teammates claimed that Ronaldo had the full support of the team. Ronaldo's agent, Jorge Mendes, insisted that he always knew about his client's admission that he was unhappy with life at Real Madrid. Ronaldo dismissed the notion that his post-match declaration of "sadness" was related to a desire for a new and improved contract at the club. Real Madrid president, Florentino Perez, claimed that Ronaldo did not want to leave the club, and that he is unhappy for other reasons. Former Barcelona president, Joan Laporta, stated that Ronaldo is under a lot of pressure and would not have realized the impact of his revelation. When he returned to Real Madrid, after international duty, Ronaldo stated he is focused on achieving further success with the club. Real Madrid coach José Mourinho stated "If Ronaldo is sad but plays like he does, that's perfect for me", and believed that UEFA's decision to elect Andres Iniesta as the best player in Europe in 2011–12 could have been one of the reasons behind Ronaldo's unhappiness. Read Less

Portugal were drawn in Group B with, and, which was widely referred to as the "group of death" of the tournament. In an interview with Kicker Magazine, Ronaldo stated that "I will only be fully content with my career when I have lifted a trophy with Portugal."

After the opening defeat against Germany, Cristiano Ronaldo was criticised for under performing, showing frustration at his and his team-mates' errors and for walking off into the changing-rooms straight after the match, rather than thanking the crowd with the team. His team-mate Nani later defended him stating that he had left the pitch since he needed to instantly be treated for a possible injury. He also stated that he had been training well and contributing to the team, and that he was under excessive of pressure since football is a team sport, but that he would soon silence his critics. Luis Figo however criticised his behaviour stating that it is the captain's responsibility to always defend the group, despite the result. Read Less

In September 2011, Castrol EDGE presented "Cristiano Ronaldo: Tested to the Limit", an award-winning documentary that showed Ronaldo undertaking a series of challenges while under scientific examination. Read Less