Jose Mourinho praises Ronaldo after stunning performance

After Cristiano Ronaldo bagged a stunning hattrick against Spain in the 3-3 draw for Portugal; legendary manager Jose Mourinho praised the performance of the Real Madrid superstar. Ronaldo's winner, an 88th minute free-kick, wrapped up the comeback that made this the game of the tournament so far.

European Champions Portugal are not favoured by many as being one of the candidates to win the World Cup, but Cristiano Ronaldo again proved why he is widely to be considered the greatest of all time.

After the game, Man Utd manager Jose Mourinho told reporters: 

"He knew. He knew and that's what I really admire in some players and he is a great example, there are players for some matches, there are players for every matches and there are players for special matches. And the players for special matches are the ones.

"His [free-kick] record lately is not the best, I think for every free-kick he takes in the national team, he is not scoring as much as he did for Manchester United and for the first years in Real Madrid.

"But this one is the critical one, this one is a crucial point, it can affect the self-esteem, the self-confidence, the way to appear in the next two matches, the rivalry, what it means for Portuguese people who is at home. And he has this little touch, this little feeling and the goal is fantastic."