A footballer hoping for a smooch on one of the proudest days of his career was left with lonely lips after his girlfriend blanked and abandoned him on stage. 

Uruguay striker Luciano Rodriguez was celebrating his loan move to Brazilian giants Cruzeiro alongside his girlfriend Anto Ciavaglia.

But just as he leaned in for a kiss in front of the cameras, Ciavaglia – who has been dubbed the ‘Uruguayan Kim Kardashian’ – turned and left him stone cold.

Rodriguez’s smile vanished and he was forced to awkwardly stand on his own for a few seconds before running his hand through his hair. 

Footage of the awkward moment has gone viral on social media, and Ciavaglia has had to quell any talk of a rift between them.

The 23-year-old model, who has more than 170,000 Instagram followers, said: ‘When I entered, I greeted him and when I left, I was very nervous.

Uruguay striker Luciano Rodriguez was blanked and abaondoned by his girlfriend as he went searching for a kiss upon joining Cruzeiro

The forward, 23, tired to style out the awkward moment by running his hand through his hair

His girlfriend, Anto Ciavaglia, who has been dubbed the ‘Uruguayan Kim Kardashian,’ said she had simply been nervous and did not mean to disrespect him

‘The moment overwhelmed me and I preferred to give him space. 

‘There was no disrespect or anything like what they are trying to make it seem like.’

One clip has been seen more than 4.6 million times. 

In more footage from the unveiling, Rodriguez’s mother was seen breaking down in tears as she sat next to Ciavaglia, no doubt proud of her son.

Rodriguez, 23, has plenty to celebrate in his career. The striker has been capped five times for his country but narrowly missed out on a place in Uruguay’s World Cup squad.

He has also won the Under-20s World Cup and the Uruguayan Premier Division when he was at Liverpool Montevideo in 2023. 

After two seasons in Brazil with Bahia, he switched to Neom in the Saudi Pro League last campaign but only scored six goals in 30 games. He has now linked up with Cruzeiro on loan with a reported £14.95million buy option. 

At Cruzeiro, he links up with former Leeds forward Luis Sinisterra and ex-West Brom man Matheus Pereira.

His girlfriend, Anto Ciavaglia, was reported by Uruguayan newspaper El Pais to have been dubbed the ‘Uruguayan Kim Kardashian’ in 2021.

Commenting on the comparison, she told the outlet: ‘It’s super cute because I love her. I’m a huge fan.’