Although Ronaldo was handed a three-game ban for his red card in World Cup qualifying game after he elbowed a Republic of Ireland opponent, the Al Nassr star has already served the mandatory one-game ban. He sat out when Portugal played their final qualifying game last week -- a 9-1 win over Armenia that sealed their place at the World Cup beginning in June in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
When that first goal went in, just like everyone else, I was just grabbing onto everyone, screaming because it was like Scott McTominay was floating in the air when he struck that first goal. What a way to start and then to go on and win 4-2 with the goals that we scored and the manner in which it all played out, it was fantastic.
England have been dealt with a double injury blow, with both Grace Clinton and Katie Reid withdrawing from the squad ahead of their upcoming friendlies. Clinton was named in the squad despite missing Manchester City's last match against Liverpool through injury. She has scored once in her three matches since moving to City from rivals Manchester United, netting on her debut in a big win over West Ham.
The test is very useful for us; it shows us that all our rivals are tough. All our opponents play at 100%. Venezuela played a good game. We won, but that's not the important thing. We wanted to see how the team was doing and get some playing time under our belts. I wanted to try the 5-3-2 option, which is an interesting variation, and we have the players to do it. There are times when defensive solidity is needed.
The Albiceleste have already qualified for next year's World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States, as they gear up to face Venezuela on Friday, before taking on Puerto Rico next Monday. The reigning world champions beat Friday's opponents in September, before losing 1-0 to Ecuador in their most recent outing, though they were without an injured Lionel Messi.
