Lisbon: Ricardo Quaresma has hailed Cristiano Ronaldo as the only person he admires in football after Portugal's Euro 2016 triumph.

Quaresma replaced Ronaldo in the first half of the final against France after the captain suffered a knee injury.

The Real Madrid star, however, re-emerged from the dressing room to encourage his teammates from the sidelines and Eder's goal in extra time secured Portugal a 1-0 win and the trophy. "Even with the injury Ronaldo never stopped. He always supported the team and that's why I say, not just as a friend, that he is the only person I admire in football," Quaresma told a Portuguese daily. "I admire the strength he has."

Quaresma added: "We have a great captain. It is an honour to play alongside him and have him in the national team and all the Portuguese people should be proud to have Cristiano. "His critics speak of him, but they do not know him as a person. He is a great person, a great captain and he deserves everything he has achieved in football. He always has confidence and is always positive. That's what he wants us to be."

Talking about Portugal's first-ever triumph in a major competition, he said: "It's hard to get real sometimes. We should thank all the players, the coach and all who were part of this success.

"We fought against everything and everyone was united, which led us to the title. We have a coach who got it into our heads that we were going to be European champions."

While one may assume that the majority of the Portugal players will treasure their Euro 2016 winners' medals for the rest of their lives, Quaresma, however, has revealed himself to be rather more practical about the situation.

When asked what he would do with his medal after the final against France on Sunday, he replied: "If the medal is made of gold, then I'll sell it."

It was Quaresma who scored the winning goal in the last minutes of the round-of-16 clash against Croatia. The Besiktas winger also had a message for the critics of Portugal's pragmatic style of football.

"I don't see anyone now. Where are they?" he shot back.

"I hope they manage to sell more books. But selling more books doesn't make them know more about football than the rest of us."

Portugal's hero of Saint-Denis, goalscorer Eder, after the squad's arrival at home, said it was time to savour the wonderful moment and party.

"Thank you all for this moment. We gave everything on the field for you and we knew you were always with us.

"Now it is the time to savour this moment and party," Eder said. Despite missing most parts of the final, Ronaldo was awarded the Silver Boot for his exploits. But he showed his gratitude to Nani for getting them over the line by handing him the prize instead. "More than a captain you're a champion! Thanks for the gift! Let's go Portugal we are the Champions!" Nani wrote on his Instagram. Ronaldo revealed just how much having finally achieved success with the national team meant to him. "No one believed in us," he said. "I had already won everything with clubs. I lacked something with the national team. Portugal have deserved this after many years of sacrifice.

"It was not the final I wanted, but I am very happy. It is a trophy for all the Portuguese, for all immigrants, for all the people who believed in us. So I am very happy and very proud."

It was the perfect ending to a spectacular year for Pepe, which saw him follow up winning the Champions League with Madrid in May by not only helping Portugal to their first-ever major trophy, but also being named Man of the Match in the final at Stade de France.

"We knew we were on the pitch representing an entire nation, Portugal," the centre-back said. "It's a beautiful country with wonderful people. This victory is for everyone."