The football world rallied around Cristiano Ronaldo and his partner Georgina Rodriguez on Tuesday after they announced that their newborn son had died.
The Manchester United forward, 37, had revealed in a social media post last October that the couple was expecting twins. In a Twitter post released on Monday, they confirmed the birth of a baby girl.
“It is with our deepest sadness we have to announce that our baby boy has passed away. It is the greatest pain any parents can feel. Only the birth of our baby girl gives us the strength to live this moment with hope and happiness. We’d like to thank the doctors and nurses for their expert care. We are devastated and ask for privacy at this difficult time,” the couple said in a joint statement.
The couple, who met during Ronaldo’s time at Real Madrid, have a four-year-old daughter together, while Ronaldo has three other children. The announcement was met with widespread sympathy from across football.
“Your pain is our pain, Cristiano. Sending love and strength to you and the family,” Man United tweeted. On their web page, Real Madrid said that the club and its officials “deeply regret the death of one of the children that our beloved Cristiano Ronaldo and his partner, Georgina Rodriguez, were expecting.” “All of us here at Liverpool FC send our deepest condolences to you, Georgina and the family,” Liverpool tweeted.
“Thoughts are with you and Georgina, brother I’m so sorry,” Man Utd’s Marcus Rashford wrote on Twitter.
