This was supposed to be the day Cristiano Ronaldo arrived at this World Cup.

It didn’t work out that way.

Portugal’s talisman was under even more scrutiny than usual after Tuesday’s World Cup games had been dominated by superhuman performances by superstar footballers — Erling Haaland scoring twice for Norway against Iraq, Kylian Mbappe getting his own brace against Senegal and then, most memorably, Lionel Messi’s hat-trick against Algeria.

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But Ronaldo could not match their feats. He struggled to make an impact on a dogged and determined DR Congo who claimed their first ever World Cup point thanks to Yoane Wissa’s goal, which cancelled out Joao Neves’ early opener.

The stage was set for Ronaldo but, unlike the trio of goalscoring superstars on day six, international football’s record goalscorer couldn’t deliver.

And we shouldn’t be too surprised given Ronaldo’s recent World Cup record.

Aged 41, he remains prolific in qualification (five in five for this World Cup, 10 in nine for the last Euros) and for his club in Saudi Arabia (28 in 30 games for Al Nassr this season) but is impotent at major tournaments, with only one goal (a penalty) in his last 11 appearances across the 2022 World Cup, Euro 2024 and Portugal’s first game here.

For context, Messi has scored nine times in World Cup matches since Ronaldo netted from the spot in Portugal’s opening group stage match against Ghana in 2022. They’ll probably enjoy some WhatsApp banter about that later.

While chances were at a premium here, Ronaldo’s impact was minimal.

He mostly attempted to act as a conduit for his younger, quicker, more mobile team mates, either by deliberately standing yards offside (which meant Portugal could play it wide behind DR’s Congo high line, allowing him to be onside for the resulting cross) or trying to link play by occasionally coming deep.

He had a couple of attempts at goal from Francisco Conceicao pull-backs, neither of which troubled the goalkeeper, on what was a frustrating afternoon in Houston.

Any criticism of Ronaldo back home in Portugal, where he is hero-worshipped like no other, has mostly centred around manager Roberto Martinez’s use of him. Ronaldo is pretty much guaranteed to play every minute regardless of his impact, whereas for a player of his age a substitute role may be more suitable.

He predictably lasted the full 90 here. Also predictably, he offered very little.

Historically, this result was not quite Saudi Arabia overcoming Argentina in 2022, or Senegal shocking defending champions France 20 years previously.

Even during this tournament, Qatar’s draw against Switzerland was a surprise, while Cape Verde somehow holding Spain to a stalemate earlier this week was one of the all-time World Cup shocks.

Yet that should not diminish DR Congo’s accomplishment. Portugal’s talent pool, especially in midfield, is frankly outrageous and Roberto Martinez’s side took a sixth-minute lead. DR Congo did not wilt, however, and actually had more shots and produced a higher expected goals (xG), despite their meagre possession.

Defensively, led by their captain, former Newcastle defender Chancel Mbemba, they were immense and offered Portugal few clear-cut opportunities. There is an evident resilience and togetherness about them.

For a team sitting 45th in FIFA’s rankings to deservedly draw with one of the pre-tournament favourites and secure their first ever point at the World Cup warrants commendation. The scenes among the players and the pockets of fans inside the ground at full-time were wonderful to behold.

With Uzbekistan and Colombia making up Group K, further positive results shouldn’t be discounted.

This is not the first time that one of the tournament favourites has looked unconvincing in their first World Cup game.

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When flicking through Portugal’s squad, you could make an genuine argument that Roberto Martinez has the strongest pound-for-pound group of talent in the tournament — perhaps matched only by the French.

The ultimate challenge is getting those individuals into a coherent, victorious team. Martinez might still achieve that, but there is little doubt that they will need to improve at the sharp end of the pitch.

Portugal utterly dominated possession, circulating the ball with ease as they looked to break down DR Congo. The technical quality of Vitinha, Joao Neves, Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva could arguably keep the ball for a full 90 minutes if they were asked to, but cutting edge is also essential in tournament football.

Yes, there is a Cristiano Ronaldo-shaped elephant in the room when it comes to Portugal’s forward line, but he was not to blame for the bluntness that Martinez’s side showed here. The lack of service to their all-time top goalscorer was more of a concern.

Credit must also go to DR Congo, but a single shot on target highlights just how blunt Portugal were. Knocking the ball around for long periods is all well and good, but Martinez is going to need more creativity if they are to live up to that title of World Cup contenders.

For all of Portugal’s first-half dominance of the ball (80 per cent possession) they rarely threatened. DR Congo, on the other hand, were direct on the rare occasions they could attack — and it was Wissa who drove them forward, harrying defenders, pressing the goalkeeper, carrying possession with intent and trying to make things happen.

Having whipped a left-footed shot wide of the left-hand post early on, Wissa levelled on the stroke of half-time. Arthur Masuaku whipped a great cross into the area after Portugal failed to clear a corner, and Wissa was inexplicably unmarked. Even so, the 29-year-old striker still timed his jump perfectly and directed his point-blank header into the net.

That equaliser not only represented a huge goal for his country, but also for Wissa himself. His £55m move to Newcastle from Brentford last summer has proven disastrous so far, with injuries plaguing his fitness and only three goals all season, while he did not start any of his club’s final 22 matches.

But the striker looked hungrier and fitter than he did in a Newcastle shirt across 2025-26. There was also an irony that Wissa, who turned down the chance to play at the Africa Cup of Nations so that he could perform for his club, was the scorer of their opening goal at this World Cup.

Diogo Jota won’t be far from the thoughts of Portugal’s players or fans throughout the World Cup.

Jota, who died alongside his brother Andre Silva in a car crash in July last year, would have been a central member of the Portugal squad and it was his dream to play in and win the tournament. He missed out in Qatar in 2022 due to injury.

The brothers’ parents Joaquim and Isabel Silva were VIP guests in Dallas and saw their late son honoured during the playing of the Portuguese national anthem, when a black and white image of Jota playing for Portugal was shown on the big screen.

A number of players including Bernardo Silva and Joao Neves had tears in their eyes on the pitch, while in the stand Joaquim and Isabel were understandably upset. It was an incredibly emotional and poignant moment.

Roberto Martinez said on the eve of the tournament: “What matters now is that we get to fight for one of his dreams, which is winning the World Cup. There’s no greater motivation than keeping his spirit alive in the national team.”

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