United States vs Portugal World Cup 2014: USA to put Cristiano Ronaldo 'in his place'
United States coach Jurgen Klinsmann targets the world's best player
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Jurgen Klinsmann has urged his lesser known United States players to put the world's best, Cristiano Ronaldo, in his place when they take on Portugal tonight.
Ronaldo endured a torrid first match at the World Cup when his Portugal side capitulated 4-0 against Germany.
Amid uncertainty over the Real Madrid striker's fitness heading into their must-not-lose Group G encounter with the United States, there is a real risk that the Fifa Ballon d'Or holder may miss his opportunity to impress in Brazil.
His chances of making an impact on the tournament will have to overcome the attentions of the United States. Klinsmann has urged his players to ignore reputations heading into a match in which Ronaldo is sure to be paid close attention.
"There’s a lot of admiration for him (Ronaldo) and for the players who play at big clubs and in the Champions League," the former Germany international told reporters.
"But this is the moment to prove yourself, to step up, play those guys and put them in place. We want to put Cristiano in place.
"We want to make it our game, we are ready for that, we have been preparing for that a long time. We are not worried about any players, we respect them of course, as we always do, but we are ready."
With victory over Ghana in their first match, the United States can guarantee their place in the knock-out phase with a win tonight.
USA goalkeeper Tim Howard, who played with Ronaldo at Manchester United, also revealed there are plans in place to take care of Portugal's greatest threat.
"We want to bottle him up, it has not been done for four or five years but we’ll see what we can do. We have a gameplan and if we put that in place we’ll give ourselves a good chance.
"If we pay too much attention to Ronaldo someone else will beat us. We’ve got to be diligent, we have to be aware of their danger men. We have a gameplan in place and now we have to go and execute it."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments