Cristiano Ronaldo picked up in air by Portugal pitch invader in strange scenes

Cristiano Ronaldo was lifted up into the air by a pitch invader in a strange interaction during Portugal’s victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Saturday night. The one-time European champions managed to stroll to a routine win in Lisbon, with Bernardo Silva opening the scoring in the first half before a Bruno Fernandes brace wrapped up all three points for the hosts.

The match was briefly interrupted when a fan made his way onto the pitch while carrying a Portugal flag in a bid to meet Ronaldo, which has become a semi-regular occurence when the 38-year-old has played for his country over the last few years. The supporter managed to get up close with his hero before lifting him up into the air as they shared a hug while a number of stewards approached the scene to drag him away.

The fan managed to evade security staff by sprinting away to a different side of the pitch, although he found the time to perform Ronaldo’s trademark goal celebration together with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner before racing off with a beaming smile on his face. Ronaldo dealt with the situation well as he smiled and laughed along before the invader was eventually caught by the stewards running after him and escorted off the field.

It came just weeks after Ronaldo was nearly taken out by an overzealous pitch invader while warming up before playing for Al-Nassr against Al-Tawoun during the latter stages of the Saudi Pro League season. The former Manchester United ace was going through the motions alongside his team-mates when he was approached by the fan, who took a tumble as he attempted to get close to his idol near the touchline and narrowly avoided swiping Ronaldo’s legs from underneath hiim.

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Ronaldo picked up his 199th international cap for Portugal against Bosnia on Saturday but failed to get himself on the scoresheet in spite of his best efforts over the course of the 90 minutes. He did manage to find the back of the net with a looping header before the half-time whistle but saw his celebrations cut short when his pinpoint finish was ruled out for offside.

Portugal managed to cruise to victory even without Ronaldo among the goals, though, to extend their lead at the top of Group J in qualifying for Euro 2024. They have won all three of their matches and currently sit two points ahead of second-placed Slovakia, while Bosnia find themselves in fourth after dropping below Luxembourg as a result of their latest defeat.

The visitors came close to snatching the lead midway through the first half but Edin Dzeko was unable to keep his volleyed effort on target after being found unmarked in the box. Bosnia were made to pay just moments before the break when Silva chipped home after being played through on goal by Fernandes, who went on to score twice as the clock ticked down to rubber-stamp the win for Portugal.

A fine header on 77 minutes from the United midfielder gave Roberto Martinez’s side a two-goal cushion before he added a third in the closing stages with a clean strike into the top corner on the half-volley. The result saw Portugal consolidate their hopes of qualifying for Euro 2024 in Germany ahead of their next match against Iceland, which will take place in Reykjavik on Tuesday to round off their latest batch of international fixtures.

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