‘Beating Spain at the World Cup isn't for everyone’ — Super Eagles supporters troll Ronaldo, Portugal

Following Portugal’s agonising 1-0 Round of 16 elimination at the hands of Spain, passionate supporters of Nigeria’s Super Eagles have taken to social media to ruthlessly taunt the Iberian giants.

The playful trolling came with some humour after what is expected to be Cristiano Ronaldo’s final appearance on the world stage with Portugal.

Billed ahead of kick-off as the tie of the round, the highly anticipated match in Dallas ultimately turned into an underwhelming, gruelling tactical chess match. Both teams heavily prioritised defensive shape, leading to a tepid opening 70 minutes with very little goalmouth action.

The deadlock was finally broken late in the second half when both managers turned to their respective benches.

It was Spain's Luis de la Fuente whose adjustments made the definitive impact, as Barcelona’s Ferran Torres combined brilliantly with Arsenal midfielder Mikel Merino, who fired home a dramatic winner to send La Roja into the quarter-finals to face Belgium.

The result confirmed a tragic end to Cristiano Ronaldo's international career, as the 41-year-old icon officially bows out of the tournament to join an elite pantheon of legends, including Johan Cruyff, Paolo Maldini, and Eusébio, who never managed to win the World Cup.

Seeing the Portuguese heavyweights fail to breach the Spanish defence, Nigerian football fans quickly flooded X (formerly Twitter) to remind the world of their own rich history against La Roja.

A viral, comical post circulated by Super Eagles supporters featured a side-by-side collage contrasting Portugal's 1-0 defeat with Nigeria's legendary 3-2 victory over Spain at the 1998 World Cup in France.

Complete with iconic throwback pictures of Sunday Oliseh and the squad celebrating, the post read: “Beating Spain at the World Cup isn't for everyone.”

While Nigerian fans enjoy the banter of past glories, Portugal is left to return to the drawing board to plan for a 2030 World Cup on home soil without their greatest-ever player, while Spain marches on with full momentum.