Over the past week, Cristiano Ronaldo has watched Lionel Messi bag five goals in two games. He's seen Kylian Mbappe score four and Erling Haaland add four of his own. Ronaldo has heard that he was washed up, that he no longer belonged in their league. There were even suggestions that Ronaldo, a five-time winner of the Ballon d'Or and international soccer's all-time record goal scorer, was a liability to his country.
过去一周，C罗亲眼见证莱昂内尔·梅西两场比赛轰入五球，基利安·姆巴佩、厄林·哈兰德也各自斩获四球。外界不断传出声音，说他巅峰不再、已然过气，配不上顶尖球星的行列。甚至有人声称，这位五座金球奖得主、足坛国家队历史总进球纪录保持者，如今反倒成了葡萄牙队的拖累。
As it turns out, reports of Ronaldo's demise have been greatly exaggerated.
事实证明，那些唱衰C罗、宣称他生涯落幕的言论，完全言过其实。
On Tuesday, in Portugal's second game here, Ronaldo arrived fashionably late to the party with two goals of his own and a message to the rest of the planet.
周二，葡萄牙队本届赛事第二战，此前状态低迷的C罗终于迎来爆发，独中两元，向全世界传递出属于他的宣言。
"I'm back," he said straight into a TV camera after the 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan. "I'm back."
球队5-0大胜乌兹别克斯坦赛后，他直面镜头直白宣告：“我回来了，我回来了。”
At 41 years old, Ronaldo represents a living, breathing, preening conundrum for his national team. There is no question that he is diminished from the lethal finisher and all-around menace he was in his prime. He is a step slower, his touch occasionally lets him down. In Portugal's first match, against the Democratic Republic of Congo, he didn't even manage a shot on target. But now, with his star power intact, Ronaldo is also the first man in history to score at six different World Cups.
41岁的C罗对葡萄牙国家队而言，是一个充满矛盾、争议不断的特殊存在。不可否认，他早已不复巅峰时期无解的终结能力与全方位统治力：步伐变慢，偶尔停球、触球也会失误。对阵刚果民主共和国的首战，他甚至没能完成一脚射正。但时至今日，他的赛场影响力依旧无可替代，更是史上第一位在六届世界杯均取得进球的球员。
"It was a difficult week, a dark week," he told Portuguese television after the match. "It seemed like I was already retired from football. But I held on, as always, because I believe in hard work. It was difficult, I have to admit, but we're back."
赛后接受葡萄牙电视台采访时他坦言：“这周很难熬，堪称至暗一周。外界说得好像我已经退役了。但我一如既往咬牙坚持，因为我信奉勤勉付出。我必须承认这段日子很难，但我们回来了。”
To the droves of Portuguese fans who packed NRG Stadium just to lay eyes on him, Ronaldo had never left. During the warm-ups, they met each of his practice strikes with his signature "Siuuu." Every time he appeared on the giant screen, the volume in the building went up. And 6 minutes into the game, he delivered what they were hoping for: a first goal in his last 10 games at major tournaments.
无数葡萄牙球迷挤满NRG体育场，只为亲眼见证他的身影，对他们来说，C罗从未退场。热身阶段，每当他完成一脚射门，全场球迷都会齐喊他标志性的“Siuuu”庆祝；只要大屏出现他的画面，现场欢呼声便瞬间高涨。开赛第6分钟，他便兑现了球迷的期待：打入近十场国际大赛的首粒进球。
Thirty-three minutes later, Ronaldo added a second, by running onto a through ball from Bruno Fernandes and guiding it home at the far post.
33分钟后，C罗再下一城，前插接应布鲁诺·费尔南德斯送出的直塞，在远门柱轻巧推射破门。
In reality, with or without the goal drought, Tuesday's match was always going to be a game for him. Ronaldo has scored against everyone in his seemingly endless career, with 145 goals in 230 appearances for Portugal. But he rarely misses the chance to feast on minnows. This is, after all, a player who has scored 10 times in his life against Luxembourg and nine times against Hungary.
事实上，无论是否遭遇进球荒，这场比赛都注定属于他。漫长职业生涯里，他攻破过几乎所有对手球门，为葡萄牙出战230场打入145球。面对实力偏弱的鱼腩球队，他更是从不浪费得分机会——生涯对阵卢森堡轰入10球、对阵匈牙利打入9球便是最好证明。
Just as remarkable against Uzbekistan, however, was a moment when he didn't score.
不过本场对阵乌兹别克斯坦，最令人称道的一幕，反倒出现在他没有完成射门的时刻。
In the 17th minute, Portugal had won a free kick on the edge of the box, and the entire stadium was certain of what would happen next. Ronaldo stood over the ball and began sizing it up. They had seen this routine a million times over the past 20 years. The wide stance. The deep breaths. The laser focus. Some 68,800 witnesses were convinced that one of the greatest marksmen of all time was going to run-up and smash it. That included Uzbekistan's goalkeeper.
第17分钟，葡萄牙在前场禁区线获得任意球，全场观众都预判了接下来的画面：C罗站在球前、调整站位，这套流程二十年间大家早已看过无数次——双腿大幅分开、深呼吸、眼神高度专注。全场近6.88万名观众，连同乌兹别克斯坦门将，都认定这位足坛顶级射手会助跑大力攻门。
What no one had imagined was a designed set piece that wouldn't end with Ronaldo shooting. Instead, defender Nuno Mendes sprinted in and drove a low, left-footed strike into the bottom of the net. And Ronaldo, the billion-dollar decoy, celebrated by pointing at his head. The man who had conquered soccer was showing the crowd that he might just be a chess master too.
没人料到这是一套精心设计的定位球战术，射门者并非C罗。后卫努诺·门德斯快速插上，左脚低射将球打入球门下角。而C罗，这位身价、影响力无可估量的战术诱饵，赛后指着自己的脑袋庆祝，向所有人证明：征服足坛的他，同样深谙赛场博弈，如同象棋大师一般擅长布局。
Ronaldo then spent the entire second half hunting for his hat trick. The opportunity came in stoppage time, when he slid at full stretch to meet a cross, only for his effort to go wide. Moments later, the final whistle sounded and Ronaldo delivered his statement to the cameras.
整个下半场，C罗都在追逐帽子戏法。伤停补时他迎来机会，飞身滑铲接应传中，可惜射门稍稍偏出。片刻后终场哨响，C罗对着镜头说出了那句宣言。
It might only be the group stage. It might only be Uzbekistan. But Ronaldo, undoubtedly, had arrived at this World Cup.
这只是小组赛，对手也只是乌兹别克斯坦，但毋庸置疑，C罗在这届世界杯正式宣告回归。
"It's so people don't forget," he said.
他说：“我这么做，就是为了让所有人记住我还能战。”
重点词汇
Cristiano Ronaldo：克里斯蒂亚诺·罗纳尔多（简称C·罗纳尔多或C罗，葡萄牙足球运动员）
Lionel：莱昂内尔（男子教名，是Leon的变体）
Messi：梅西
in two：二重
Haaland：哈兰德，哈兰
washed up：完蛋告吹的
no longer：不再
belonged：应在，适应，合得来；belong的过去分词和过去式
Ballon：巴隆，轻快优雅
goal scorer：得分球员；得分者
