LISBON: Nani has hit out at Cristiano Ronaldo and accused his country's captain of lying over the penalty debacle in the Euro 2012 semi-final.
Ronaldo has come under attack for not stepping up sooner in the shoot-out defeat to Spain, which was lost without the Real Madrid man taking his kick after Bruno Alves, a defender, thundered his effort against the crossbar.
The world's most expensive player insists the order was decided by manager Paul Bento, but, reflecting on the heartbreaking defeat, Nani, a former club teammate at Manchester United, said Ronaldo wanted the glory shot for himself.
"Cristiano Ronaldo demanded the last penalty," the winger 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."
Nani himself had earlier been involved in a bizarre incident with Alves, the Manchester United winger running up and overtaking his teammate as he approached the area to take the third penalty.
The confusion evidently had an impact on Alves who looked short of confidence as he returned for the fourth, and what proved the decisive penalty.
The miss opened the door for former Arsenal man Cesc Fabregas to tuck home his effort and send Spain into a third successive major international tournament final.
Despite the controversy surrounding the defeat, Nani believes Portgual can be proud of their achievements in Poland and Ukraine.
He added: "I think we can take pride, showed how good we are against the world champions and I believe we warranted our place in the final. But we look good for the future." Daily Mail
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