Frank Lampard revealed the reason he stayed away from Cristiano Ronaldo on holiday despite being in the same hotel as the Portuguese mega-star.
On Tuesday, Francisco Conceicao scored a 92nd-minute winner to see Roberto Martinez's Portugal come from behind to beat the Czech Republic 2-1 in Group F.
The encounter saw Ronaldo and his Portugal colleagues largely labour in front of goal, with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner among those to have spurned several key chances.
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But despite a tepid display in the Euro 2024 opener, Ronaldo made history in the encounter by becoming the first ever player to feature in six European Championships, with his maiden tournament being back in 2004.
Still in impeccable shape at 39, Lampard revealed on the BBC that he avoided Ronaldo on holiday, seemingly due to physical embarrassment.
The England and Chelsea legend, who was staying in the same hotel as Ronaldo a few months ago, joked that he couldn’t go near the superstar most of the time, and wore a t-shirt when posing for a photo due to the Al Nassr forward’s “'incredible” figure.
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Lampard said: “I bumped into him on holiday a few months ago, I was in the same hotel on the beach and fortunately his sunspot each day was a little down from me.
“I made sure to stay away from him because he was in incredible shape. So I gave him a little bit of distance.
“I pulled him over for a picture with my son because of the incredible player he's been and I quickly put my t-shirt on and had a nice picture with him.
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“I noticed he was going to the gym twice a day with his personal trainer. Just shows you his dedication to what he does.
“I was sipping a beer watching him and gave him a ripple of applause as he walked back!”
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Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal, Euro 2024, Frank Lampard, Football, Manchester United
Chris Byfield