A Switzerland international has spoken about the threat Cristiano Ronaldo poses to him and his teammates ahead of their round of 16 clash against Portugal at the 2022 FIFA World Cup on Tuesday night.
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Despite the 37-year-old having struck on just one occasions so far in Qatar, Xherdan Shaqiri believes that he and his colleagues need to keep in mind the problems Ronaldo could cause them when they meet Portugal in the last 16 this week.
Questions have been raised over the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's ability at the highest level of late, but the former Liverpool winger feels that failing to take Ronaldo seriously would be a foolish and potentially costly mistake.
"You cannot write off Cristiano, he is one of the best players in the world together with (Lionel) Messi," he said, as per Goal.
"This guy can score any second, any minute, he has experience and everyone knows how important he is for Portugal and for his team.
"We have to know also the other players because it is not only Ronaldo.
"They have very good players, young players who can make a big difference and we need to give really a very good performance because it's knockout and anything can happen in the 95-100 minutes and we are looking forward to it."
Ronaldo is currently a free agent after being released by Manchester United last month following his explosive interview with British broadcaster Piers Morgan.
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Switzerland progressed to the last 16 after finishing second to Brazil in Group G.
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