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Nani: Ronaldo demanded last penalty
Posted Sunday, July 01, 2012 by ESPNSTAR.com

Nani: Ronaldo demanded last penalty

Portugal winger Nani has rocked the boat by accusing skipper Cristiano Ronaldo of lying over the penalty debacle in their Euro 2012 semi-final loss to Spain.

Portugal went out of the tournament after a 4-2 loss to Spain in the shoot-out which bizarrely did not feature their captain and best player Ronaldo.

The Real Madrid ace was penciled down as Portugal's fifth penalty taker but Spain secured the shoot-out win before Ronaldo's number was even called. He would later suggest that the decision to place him fifth in the queue was made by Portugal coach Paulo Bento, but Nani has offered up a different version of events.

In quotes referenced by the Daily Mail, the Manchester United star suggested his former team-mate wanted the glory of potentially netting the winning penalty in the shoot-out by going fifth.

"Cristiano Ronaldo demanded the last penalty," Nani said.

"I said to the coach I would accept any order.

"It didn't seem to be a problem to me, because penalty shoot-outs are all about luck and we did not deserve to lose like that."

Xabi Alonso had the first spot-kick saved by Rui Patricio but Spain's Iker Casillas evened things up by saving the first Portuguese penalty from Joao Moutinho.

Andres Iniesta, Pepe, Gerard Pique, Nani and Sergio Ramos all put away their penalties before Bruno Alves - who had inadvertently stepped up for the previous penalty which was eventually converted by Nani - hit the bar, leaving Cesc Fabregas to put Spain through.

Standings
    Rank Team W/D/L Pts

    Cities & Stadiums

    The Top 3 Teams of Previous Tournaments

    Year Winners Runner-up Third place
    2008SpainGermanyRussia / Turkey
    2004GreecePortugalNetherlands / Czech Republic
    2000FranceItalyNetherlands / Portugal
    1996GermanyCzech RepublicFrance / England
    1992DenmarkGermanyNetherlands / Sweden
    1988NetherlandsSoviet UnionItaly / West Germany
    1984FranceSpainDenmark / Portugal
    1980West GermanyBelgiumCzechoslovakia
    1976CzechoslovakiaWest GermanyNetherlands
    1972West GermanySoviet UnionBelgium
    1968ItalyYugoslaviaEngland
    1964SpainSoviet UnionHungary
    1960Soviet UnionYugoslaviaCzechoslovakia