Paris, July 11: Cristiano Ronaldo is the ultimate champion. Even when he is injured and off the pitch.

CR7 played only the first 25 minutes of the Euro 2016 final, yet he was back two hours later to carry off the trophy, the Coupe Henri Delaunay.

The Real Madrid superstar had won the Champions League in May but such was his hunger that this was not enough. He had never won anything with Portugal and had been burning for European glory ever since, as a teenager, he was on the losing side on home ground against Greece.

By a weird twist of fate, Sunday was the turn of Ronaldo and Portugal to inflict on France the heartache they had known in 2004.

Exacerbating the irony was the fact that the 108th-minute winning goal in extra time was scored by a substitute, Eder, who plays his league football in France for Lille.

Ronaldo, carried off in tears in the first half at the Stade de France with a damaged left knee and thigh, was patched up to return to the bench to encourage his team-mates ahead of extra time. He delivered inspiring words in the dressing room at halftime and then again out on the pitch before the start of extra time.

His reward for leadership was to be last up the stairs to the presentation dais so he could seize hold of the trophy, the first major prize Portugal have ever won.

However, it cannot be ignored that they won only one of their seven games inside 90 minutes and triumphed despite having finished third in their first-round group.

That last point illustrates the major failing of the tournament's new format following its expansion from 16 to 24 teams, which imposed the "best third places" route into the knockout stage.

The expansion has been brilliant for the European federation's bank balance - revenue increased by 34pc compared with 2012 - but at a significant cost in terms of showcasing the sport.

Spectators in France and television viewers in more than 210 territories around the world had seen some memorable goals but few memorable matches: probably Italy's victory over Spain and defeat by Germany, plus Wales's outstanding dismissal of Belgium and then the French victory over the German world champions in the semi-finals.

Ironically, the effort it took for France to beat Germany may have contributed to their defeat by Portugal. Coach Didier Deschamps was concerned that Portugal had enjoyed a day longer to prepare for the final.

He said: "There isn't much difference, for example, between four and five days' break, but there is a big difference between three and four days. This may sound like an excuse but it isn't that: it's just the reality. That said, I have to congratulate Portugal. They have a solid group and they won the match which mattered most."

Thus the final was not, in the end, resolved by a contest between the two finest players of the tournament: French striker Antoine Griezmann, with six goals to his credit, and Ronaldo in determined pursuit of his first and probably last national team title.

Two months ago, Ronaldo and Portugal colleague Pepe - voted man of the match in the final - were celebrating European triumph at club level, with Real Madrid carrying off a record-extending 11th win. Now they had secured a remarkable double in dramatic circumstances.

Ronaldo said: "I'm very happy. I've been waiting for this for a long time, since 2004, and our defeat in front of our fans by Greece. I asked God for another chance at this title because Portugal deserved it, our players deserved it, our supporters deserved it.

"I always believed these players would be strong enough to beat France. This is one of the happiest moments in all of our careers. I wanted to be a part of history and managed to do so. I'd like to thank the team, the boss, all the Portuguese, the immigrants (in France) who supported us throughout. For me this is an amazing, unique moment."

Ronaldo is a divisive figure. Fans either love him or hate him. No one ever seems to be neutral in weighing up the balance between his great talent for football and his self-promotional imagery.

His team-mates have absolutely no doubt. They are senior members of his fan club. That emerged as they applied post-match words to their actions over 120 minutes on the pitch.

Right back Cedric said: "When Ronaldo was injured it was difficult, but at half-time he talked to us about our unifying strength, so this is also very much his victory because he has been important in so many ways, so many times. He's amazing."

Pepe echoed him, saying: "It was tough losing Cristiano because he is our main man --- the man who could at any moment score a goal and make the difference --- but God helped us and we were warriors on the pitch.

"When he said he couldn't go on, I told my team-mates that we had to win it for him, that we were going to fight for him, and we managed it. We wrote a brilliant new page in the book of Portuguese football history. None of us will ever forget this."

Deschamps even suggested that Ronaldo's injury upset France because Portugal then focused on shutting down the centre of midfield in a one-off tactic, now that they no longer had the predictable "where's Ronaldo?" strategy.

At the latest count Ronaldo, now 31, has won 17 club titles (Sporting, Manchester United, Real Madrid) and more than 100 individual prizes. Until now he had won no major prize for his country.

On Sunday he was on the pitch for only 25 of the 120 minutes. Yet this one single "mini-match" proved the most important of all his record 133 appearances for his country.