"I hate that rubbish" - Roy Keane defends Cristiano Ronaldo amid heavy criticism 

Manchester United legend Roy Keane has rebuked the idea that teams are better off without Cristiano Ronaldo. The Englishman rushed to his former teammate's defense when another former teammate, Gary Neville, suggested that Portugal are better off without Ronaldo.

Portugal ran riot at the Lusail Stadium as they secured a thumping 6-1 victory over Switzerland in the last 16 of the FIFA World Cup on 6 December. Surprisingly, Cristiano Ronaldo was not selected in the starting XI by manager Fernando Santos.

Instead, Benfica forward Goncalo Ramos replaced the former Real Madrid superstar in the Portugal front three.

Santos' bold decision was unexpected, to say the least. However, it clearly paid off as Ramos bagged a hat-trick in the thrilling encounter. Pepe, Raphael Guerreiro, and Rafael Leao added their names to the scoresheet, securing a place in the quarter-finals for Portugal.

This has prompted the idea that Portugal could perform better without Cristiano Ronaldo on the pitch, a proposition shared by Neville.

While the former England defender was critical of the Portugal captain, Keane was dismissive of such unflattering remarks about Ronaldo. He said (via Extra.ie):

"When a team does well without Ronaldo, (it is a case of) 'We’re better off without Ronaldo'... I hate that rubbish. Juventus haven’t done anything since he left a couple of years ago, they’ve been a disgrace."

"Last night, the manager made a decision, a correct decision, he thought, 'I need more mobility up front,' and the guy (Goncalo Ramos) scores a hat-trick and everyone’s going, 'That’s down to Ronaldo (not playing)'."

Mesut Ozil condemns criticism of Cristiano Ronaldo in social media rant

Former Real Madrid star Mesut Ozil, who shared three seasons from 2010 to 2013 with Cristiano Ronaldo at the Bernabeu, also came to his former teammate's defense. The German took to Twitter to slam the Portuguese superstar's critics.

Ozil wrote:

"I really don't get where this constant negativity from the press about Cristiano comes from... The media is just trying to get clicks, and pundits who don't have a career anymore just want to get attention with his big name and try to make him look bad..."

Ozil lavished praise on Cristiano Ronaldo and continued:

"He is soon 38 years old - so what's the surprise that he doesn't score 50 goals a season anymore? Every football fan out there should be happy to have seen him playing world-class football for 20 years."

"I don't think anyone from the new generation will be able to match his numbers again. He will forever be in his own category. Everyone should show more respect to one of the greatest athletes in sports history..."