Cristiano Ronaldo sends message to Portugal teammates as World Cup dream hangs by thread

Cristiano Ronaldo has never won the World Cup and his dreams are going to come under serious scrutiny this week as Portugal face a crucial World Cup play-off against Turkey. His side struggled in qualifying, losing out on automatic qualification to Serbia in Group F in controversial fashion back in November.

The match against Turkey will be played in Porto, with the winner of the tie hosting either Italy or Macedonia in the final play-off round on March 29. A match against European Champions Italy would be a mouth-watering prospect as they go head-to-head for a place at the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

The Manchester United man has issued a battle cry ahead of the match, posting to Instagram, he vowed to put his nation in its 'rightful place' and delivered a strong message to his teammates. The Portugal captain, who will be 40 when the next World Cup takes place in 2026 said: "Total focus on World Cup 2022."

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"Proud as always to represent Portugal. We know the road won't be easy, we have the utmost respect for the opponents we will face and who share the same goals as us. But, together, we will fight to put Portugal in our rightful place. Let's do this."

Joao Cancelo will miss out on the fixture against Turkey alongside Renato Sanches with both players suspended for the Turkey match but would be back for the potential final round against Macedonia or Italy. There are doubts around centre back Ruben Dias, who is injured along with Nelson Semedo while Pepe has tested positive for COVID; Wolves' Ruben Neves is also a doubt after picking up a knock against Wolves on Friday.

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