Cristiano Ronaldo was left in tears following Portugal’s victory over Croatia last night. The legendary footballer was seen getting highly emotional as he paid tribute to former teammate Diogo Jota. 

Jota, who was tragically killed in a car accident last year, previously racked up 49 caps for the Portuguese national team, scoring 14 goals in total.

While his death had a profound impact on the world of football, Ronaldo chose at the time to stay away from the funeral. The star footballer said he didn’t want to cause a ‘circus’ by turning up, a decision which earned him much criticism from fans. 

However, Ronaldo has now paid tribute in his own way. Following a tight victory against Croatia in Toronto last night, the Portuguese star held up and later wore a number 21 shirt in honour of his late teammate. 

Speaking on the tribute, which left him in tears, Ronaldo said: ‘We knew it before the game. It was such a special moment. We speak today, our group, about that, the coincidence of life; it’s unbelievable.’ 

‘I was amazed because of the situation today. It means a lot to us, not only because we won the game, but also the way we won the game. It was a difficult game, we knew it,’ he continued. 

Portugal won against Croatia 2-1 after a controversial VAR decision saw Josko Gvardiol’s equaliser disallowed. The massive victory sees them placed through to the 16 knockout rounds of the World Cup. 

Ronaldo has since spoken on his decision not to attend Jota’s funeral, instead choosing to holiday in Mallorca. He told Piers Morgan: ‘Two things, people criticise me a lot. As I say, I don’t care about that, because when you feel your conscience is good, free, you don’t have to worry about what people say. 

‘But one of the things that I don’t do is that after my father died, I’ve never been in a cemetery again. And second, you know my reputation: wherever I go is a circus. I don’t go either because if I go, the attention goes to me and I don’t want this kind of attention,’ he continued. 

Liverpool recently revealed a memorial at Anfield for Jota and his brother, Andre Silva. Reds supporters also paid tribute to the former player, singing his name in the 20th minute of every match. 

The poignant memorial is named Forever 20, a tribute to his jersey number while he played for the club. At the centre of the memorial is a flowing heart sculpture, which is said to be in honour of Jota’s iconic goal celebration.