Portuguese football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo unexpectedly left the national team’s training camp in Copenhagen early on September 30 and missed Portugal’s subsequent UEFA Nations League matches. On Tuesday (October 6), Ronaldo publicly apologized, saying he was willing to return to the national team, but he also accused Portugal’s new head coach Jorge Jesus of breaking his promises twice.
Ronaldo Had Backed Jesus to Take Over the National Team
The incident stems from a crisis of trust between Ronaldo and Jesus. In his latest post on Tuesday, Ronaldo revealed that after this year’s World Cup he had intended to say farewell to the national team, but was persuaded to stay by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) president’s repeated appeals. At the time, the president even proactively sought his opinion on the choice of head coach, and Ronaldo personally gave his blessing, saying Jesus was the “right person for the job.”
Later, during a face-to-face meeting at Cidade do Futebol, Jesus personally promised Ronaldo that he was vital to the team, and specifically arranged for him to play in the first and last Nations League matches, with the other games managed for fitness reasons through 3 to 4 substitutions per match.
A String of Broken Promises Became the Trigger for Ronaldo’s Exit
Ronaldo went on to say that before the match against Norway, the coach asked whether he could play 30 minutes. He agreed and actively warmed up in the second half, only to spend the entire match stuck on the bench. Although the two sides reached an understanding after the game, with the coach promising to publicly explain and apologize at the press conference before the next match against Denmark, the coach instead not only directly announced that Ronaldo would not be in the starting lineup, but his statements at the press conference were also completely different from what had been privately agreed.
｜Related Reading｜Portugal’s New Football Coach’s Lineup Decisions Spark Internal Rift; Ronaldo Leaves Nations League Camp Over Bench Role
Unwilling to tolerate the coach’s repeated broken promises any longer, Ronaldo decided to leave the team outright. He later issued an official statement, admitting that his impulsive departure had been handled inappropriately, and publicly apologized to his teammates and the Portuguese people.
Ronaldo stressed that he was willing to take full responsibility and would accept any suspension imposed by the Portuguese Football Federation, while also making clear that this does not mean he is quitting the national team — he remains ready at any time to serve his country in the future.
Was Benching Ronaldo Meant to “Save Face for a Legend”?
The Portuguese Football Federation has not yet responded to Ronaldo’s latest statement, while Jesus reiterated his coaching stance after Ronaldo left the national team on September 30. Following Portugal’s match against Norway, he firmly rejected reports that he had held a closed-door meeting and apologized to Ronaldo: “This is fabricated fake news. Why would I apologize to anyone? What exactly would I be apologizing for?”
Jesus said bluntly that it was only because Ronaldo holds special significance for the national team that an ordinary tactical decision was blown up into a huge storm; extending his warm-up time that day was done entirely out of consideration for the face of this national team legend. He also emphasized that “no one’s playing career lasts forever,” that the team’s operations will never stall for any individual, and that while Ronaldo is still welcome to return to the national team, he must accept the coaching staff’s decisions and rules as a precondition.
🎥🚨 Full transcription of Jorge Jesus’ statements when asked about Cristiano Ronaldo in today’s press conference ahead of their match against Denmark tomorrow… 🇵🇹🗣 Jorge Jesus: “Before answering the question, I want to make an interruption. For me, the most important thing, the most important thing, is the objective of what we have come here to do against Denmark. It is about respecting the opponent. We are going to play against a great opponent, with the ambition of continuing to win the Nations League. I don’t have one player, I have 23 players, and you can ask whatever questions you want about any player. But I’ll answer your question. As for Ronaldo, one question is not enough, three is too many. I will only answer two questions about Ronaldo, and then I won’t answer any more, because Ronaldo is not the main reason I am here. The main reason I am here is Denmark, and the fact that I am the national team coach. Now, to answer your question specifically. I have it memorised, but can you repeat it?” Journalist: “Whether coach Jorge Jesus agreed with Ronaldo on his playing time, and whether he refused to train yesterday with the national team.” 🇵🇹🗣 Jorge Jesus: “Well, it is true that I agreed something with him. But I didn’t only agree it with him. We also created a plan, as I did with Bruno Fernandes. I told Cris that he would not play in the game against Norway or the game against Denmark. He would not play because I believed that was the right thing to do. I worked with Cris for a year. I didn’t arrive at the national team three months ago and meet Cris. I worked with Cris for a year. I know his physical condition completely. I know because I already did this with him in Saudi Arabia. When there were games every three days, Cris rarely played. Furthermore, Cris never trains on the first day or the second day after a game. Never. He spent a year with me and never did. So, I agreed this with him. Before the game, I told him, and when we had our first press conference in Portugal, he also spoke about this. He said that whatever the coach wanted, whether he was asked to play or sit on the bench, he would sit on the bench. So, he never refused anything, and that is exactly what happened. But I am a coach who does not go to the bench thinking, ‘In 60 minutes I’m going to have Carlos Daniel,’ or, ‘In 70 minutes I’m going to have…’ That is not how I work on the bench. The game tells me what I am going to do. I thought that perhaps I had agreed with him that he would not play the first two games. But perhaps I would need him in the final minutes. However, the game dictated other things. It started telling me other things, and I did not put him on the pitch. That is the real point. And since I am talking about Cris, let me tell you something. I worked with Cris for a year. It seems as though there is some kind of issue between me and him. There is no issue at all. I have had issues with many players, but don’t turn this into an issue that does not exist. This was a coaching decision. I had a plan. If you want, I’ll also tell you about Bruno. Bruno, in the game against Norway, I told him… Bruno came after the game against… It was exactly the same. What does this tell you? It tells you something about the question I was asked earlier about a player having status, doesn’t it? Status is one thing. The rules are the same for everyone. Now, status allows the coach, or at least it does in my case, because of the players’ careers and what they have achieved, to be a little more careful about certain decisions before the game takes place. After the game takes place, it is the same. The coach has to make the decision. That is how I think, and I always make decisions based on one objective, which is what is best for the team, while always respecting the players…" https://t.co/NuZ5k8oS9L
— The Nassr Tribune™️ (@AlNassrTribune) September 30, 2026
