Fans won't blame Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo should not be held responsible for Portugal's defeat to Spain in the semi-final of Euro 2012, according to a poll conducted by GiveMeFootball.

It was supposed to be Ronaldo's semi-final, but he failed to stamp his authority on the game and saw his fibre questioned after missing the opportunity to take a penalty in the decisive shootout.

The Portugal captain was named as the fifth penalty taker but was not needed after Spain took advantage of misses from Joao Moutinho and Bruno Alves, and many believe Ronaldo should have taken the first penalty to give his country the initiative.

Ronaldo faced a backlash on Twitter for not taking a penalty with accusations of a lack of guts or an abundance of arrogance levelled at the Real Madrid superstar.

However, the results of a wider survey by GMF have shown that Ronaldo can count on the majority of the public support following his country's failure, with the 27-year-old not identified as the main culprit for the loss.

Over 10,000 fans responded to a GMF poll and voted in support of the former Manchester United forward, with 58 percent of fans believing Ronaldo was not to blame for Portugal's exit.

This was not an opinion held universally, however, with almost 5000 people suggesting Ronaldo should burden the brunt of the criticism after his country fell at the penultimate hurdle in the European Championships.