ROBBIE BRADY once earned a bollocking from Alex Ferguson for allowing Cristiano Ronaldo to skip him in a canteen queue.
Brady protested that he was just being polite but his manager argued it showed poor mentality against a player he was notionally competing with for a place in the Manchester United team.
The Dubliner may well have learned the lesson because, last night, he barged over his one-time club-mate to stop him from getting on the end of a cross.
The trouble was others were as accommodating as Brady had been as a teenager and, so, after Joao Felix netted the opener, Ronaldo scored twice, as he had when Ireland last played on Portuguese soil.
Instead of being horrible to play against as John O’Shea had sought, Ireland were simply guilty of horrible defending, admittedly against a very good side who will put better teams to the sword.
The first goal was down to falling asleep at a set-piece, the second a result of Liam Scales lagging behind his team-mates and playing Ronaldo onside.
And the third when he drifted in between the space between Scales and Callum O’Dowda.
The evening was both a reminder of his talent and of Ireland’s deficiencies which will not be solved overnight by O’Shea or anyone else.
Almost 21 years after he had run O’Shea ragged for Sporting Lisbon against United ahead of his move to Old Trafford, Ronaldo and his pals tore his team asunder.
Whilst everyone else managed to remove their anthem jacks all by themselves, Ronaldo held his arms behind him so a member of the backroom staff could do it for him.
It gave him the familiar appearance of a prima donna but, then, he is so advanced in years that perhaps he does need assistance to get through the mundanities of daily life.
RELENTLESS RONALDO
At 39, he is not even the oldest player in the Portuguese team with that honour belonging to Pepe who, at 41, is still ploughing through opponents for a short cut.
He was not the first Portuguese defender to upend someone in a white shirt. That was Diogo Dalot who caught Sammie Szmodics with his studs with fewer than 90 seconds gone.
After lengthy treatment, Szmodics was able to continue with Adam Idah also shaking off his discomfort when Pepe had clattered him from behind.
That was just around when Portugal were beginning to find their rhythm and punch holes in the Ireland defence.
Rafael Leao got past Séamus Coleman and played in Bruno Fernandes who skipped around Caoimhín Kelleher and to the byline before Jake O’Brien ensured his pull-back did not reach Ronaldo, his intended target.
He did collect a ball when he had nipped in behind the Ireland defence but he was clearly offside.
But he insisted on playing on and teeing up Joao Felix who fired a shot into the net only for the celebrations in the stands to be cut short.
But they did not have to wait too long for an actual goal to celebrate. Ronaldo put in a delightful ball behind Scales for Dalot to collect after an angled run.
He cut it back for Felix whose shot went through Coleman’s legs but Kelleher did well to react by sticking out his left foot to put it out for a corner.
The respite was temporary because Ireland fell asleep at the set-piece. Joao Cancelo played it short to Fernandes and Szmodics and others seemed oblivious to Felix’s presence in space in the box.
It was duly played to him and he effortlessly punished Ireland’s slackness.
Worse could have followed. If Ronaldo patting the head and then stroking the chin of Josh Cullen after a handball by the Burnley midfielder was not annoying enough, he then nearly scored from the free-kick.
Kelleher was left rooted to the spot when, from 30 yards out, Ronaldo rattled the upright with a free-kick which took a deflection off Idah.
Leao chased in for the rebound but went crashing to the ground as Coleman challenged with appeals for a penalty falling on deaf ears.
It was just as well because Ireland were hanging on their fingernails at this point and the visitors did not even create the first half-chance that came their way, even if it was a reward for honest endeavour.
Goncalo Inacio miskicked under pressure but António Silva reacted well to stop Szmodics getting a clean connection on the ball but Ireland made little use of the corner.
Similarly, Cancelo inadvertently played in Idah but his progress was halted inside the box with Szmodics conceding a free-kick as he tried to reach a loose ball.
But the incidents provided some hope and relieved the pressure at the back and their next opportunity came at the end of the one decent passing move they managed.
It saw Will Smallbone push it through for Idah.
His cross was intercepted by Silva but Coleman had made a lung-busting run into the box but could not finish from close range. The ball spun loose to Idah but he fired the wrong side of the post from a tight angle.
Portugal went up a gear again before the break and had a second, and stronger, penalty appeal turned down.
Ferrnandes crossed from the left and Brady climbed all over Ronaldo to ensure he did not connect. Referee Chris Kavanagh awarded a corner rather than a spot-kick.
The veteran’s fury was clear and he almost got on the scoresheet in first half stoppage time anyway with a low drive which Kelleher gathered at the second attempt.
But the scoreline eventually began to resemble the home side’s dominance. After Danilo Perreira beat Idah to Dara O’Shea’s ball forward.
Portugal worked it back up the field with Ronaldo cutting inside Scales and firing into the top corner.
He then finished from substitute Diogo Jota’s tee-up.
They could have scored more with Ireland denied some consolation when Tom Cannon, who made his debut off the bench, fired into the side-netting.
You can make your own pun with his surname to describe the role Ireland performed in this game.