Ronaldo up against unwanted numbers ahead of Uzbekistan clash

Cristiano Ronaldo enters Portugal's second Group K match at the FIFA World Cup against Uzbekistan tonight with questions swirling around him.

After an underwhelming display in Portugal's 1-1 draw with DR Congo, the 41-year-old finds himself under intense scrutiny. The result not only dented Portugal's status as one of the tournament favourites but also brought renewed attention to a series of uncomfortable statistics that have followed the five-time Ballon d'Or winner in recent major tournaments.

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Can Ronaldo silence the critics, or will the numbers continue to do the talking? Here's a look at the stats behind the debate:

**Ronaldo has failed to score in each of his last 10 major tournament matches (World Cup and Euros), despite attempting 33 shots (11 on target) and generating 4.5 xG. 

**Excluding penalties, Ronaldo is without a major tournament goal in 13 matches, despite 42 non-penalty shots. 

**After drawing DR Congo, Portugal risk failing to win either of their opening two World Cup matches for only the second time, after 2014, when they lost 4-0 to Germany and drew 2-2 with the USA before exiting in the group stage. 

**Vitinha completed 121 passes against DR Congo -- the most by any player in the opening round and the highest by a Portugal player in a World Cup match, surpassing Adrien Silva's 101 against Iran in 2018. 

**Uzbekistan's xG of 1.16 in their 3-1 defeat to Colombia was the highest by a World Cup debutant since Slovakia in 2010. 

**This will be the first-ever meeting between Portugal and Uzbekistan. 

**Portugal are winless in their last two World Cup matches against AFC opposition -- drawing 1-1 with Iran in 2018 and losing 2-1 to South Korea in 2022.