Euro 2016 proved to be a memorable summer for Cristiano Ronaldo.
In what might well endure as the Manchester United star’s greatest achievement, Portugal were crowned European champions to secure their first ever piece of major international silverware.
While Ronaldo had already won every trophy under the sun with Real Madrid, it was ending his duck with the Selecao that really solidified his status amongst the greatest footballers in history.
Ronaldo at Euro 2016
However, the journey to glory in France certainly wasn’t an easy one with Portugal crawling out of the group stages on a technicality as one of the highest-ranked third-place teams.
Portugal didn’t win a single game on their way to the knockout rounds with Ronaldo even missing a penalty against Austria to suggest that the Iberian nation didn’t stand a chance of going all the way.
And the frustrations rising in the Portugal camp couldn’t have been clearer than before the 3-3 draw with Hungary in an incident involving Ronaldo that still feels remarkable more than five years later.
Ronaldo throwing a mic into the lake
While the five-time Ballon d’Or winner was taking a stroll through Lyon with his teammates, he was asked a question by reporter Diogo Torres of Portuguese news station CMTV.
But instead of getting an answer from the Real forward, the journalist could barely believe his eyes as Ronaldo proceeded to grab his microphone and throw it into the lake they were walking past.
Yes, that’s right, Ronaldo was so displeased with the reporter’s approach that he sent the recording equipment to a wet and soggy grave in stunning footage that you can reminisce on below:
It’s not everyday that you see that happen, is it?
Why did Ronaldo do it?
But other than the high-pressure situation of a tournament that wasn’t going Portugal’s way, why might Ronaldo lost his temper with the reporter? Well, Torres himself certainly had an idea.
According to Goal, Torres explained to the BBC at the time: “I asked Ronaldo if he was prepared for the match. He didn’t answer. He grabbed my mic and threw it into the lake.
“I’m not sure why he did it. I think it was a momentary thing. I think he would not have done it if he had thought about it.
“We are a TV channel of a major newspaper in Portugal. We produce a lot of news about him. Some of it he doesn’t like. Perhaps that’s why he did it. But it wasn’t a personal thing.
“I’ve not had an apology from Ronaldo or the team. We travelled to France on the same plane with the players and will fly back with them.”
We would joke that the flight home would have been rather awkward after Torres and Ronaldo’s coming together, but something tells us that Portugal’s victory might have eased the tensions…
