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Ronaldo brings his Madrid problems home
Ronaldo said last week that club and country are different matters and his troubles at Real Madrid would be cast aside when he pulled on the famous gold shirt of Brazil. But, if anything, his recent performances at international level have been even worse.
Brazil's number nine huffed and puffed his way through Sunday's 1-0 win over Peru in their World Cup qualifier in Goiania, complaining of the heat amid media speculation that he was still overweight. "The players who come from Europe are not used to this weather," he told Brazilian television during the halftime break. Despite admitting that he found the conditions difficult, Ronaldo was kept on the pitch for the full 90 minutes by coach Carlos Alberto Parreira while the much livelier Kaka was substituted. Ronaldo missed an open goal in the first half, wasted another chance shortly afterwards when he shot weakly at Peru goalkeeper Oscar Ibanez when he was clean through on goal and at one stage was jeered by the crowd. His only notable contribution in the whole 90 minutes was to provide the pass from which Kaka scored the only goal -- Brazil's first in competitive games for four hours and 29 minutes -- in the 74th minute. Similarly, Ronaldo had blamed the high altitude of Quito for an equally uninspiring display when Brazil lost their previous qualifier 1-0 to Ecuador in November. Yet he stayed on to the bitter end in that match as well, wasting Brazil's best chance to equalise. "Despite laying on the goal, Ronaldo missed some easy chances and took very little part in the game," wrote Jose Geraldo Couto, columnist in the Folha de Sao Paulo. "Is there some law which obliges him to stay on the pitch the whole time?" Parreira, however, said he would not even contemplate sending the Phenomenal One to the bench. "I haven't considered this possibility," Parreira, whose side are away to Uruguay in their next qualifier on Wednesday, told reporters after the game. "It hasn't even been analysed. Ronaldo is a first-team player for the Brazilian national side. "In the second half, he took greater part in the game and when he takes part, he can be decisive. "The supporters forget very easily about everything he has done for the national team," added Parreira. "He's one of the world's top forwards. We're lucky that Ronaldo is Brazilian." Brazil's win over Peru kept them on Argentina's heels in the South American group. After 12 of the 18 qualifiers, Argentina are top with 25 points and Brazil second on 23.
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