Cristiano Ronaldo accused Portugal coach Jorge Jesus of twice breaking his word and left the national team’s Nations League camp last week, the 41-year-old forward said in a lengthy statement issued on Tuesday.
Ronaldo said Jesus had agreed he would miss matches against Norway and Denmark to manage his fitness, but on the day of the Norway game, the coach told him he would play for 30 minutes. “Everyone knows the rest. I warmed up from halftime onwards, watched the minutes tick by and wasn’t called on,” Ronaldo said. “The manager had broken his word to me.”
A subsequent meeting with Jesus, attended by Al Nassr sporting director Simao Coutinho, produced an agreement for the coach to clarify events at his next press conference, Ronaldo said. An eight-point document was prepared stating Ronaldo had never demanded playing time, had respected Jesus’s decisions, and that the coach’s request for him to warm up without bringing him on had been a mistake. According to Ronaldo, Jesus’s public remarks bore no resemblance to their private discussion. “It was the second time he had broken his word to me,” Ronaldo said. “I decided to leave the training camp without waiting for any further broken promises.”
Ronaldo apologized for failing to greet supporters after the Norway match and for leaving his teammates, accepting that his captaincy made his conduct more serious. “The consequences of my actions must be assessed and punished by the Portuguese Football Federation,” he said. Despite the dispute, he insisted he remained available for selection after any punishment. “If I’m physically fit, playing for my club and hopefully scoring goals, after serving whatever suspension is imposed on me, I’ll be available, as I always have been, to compete and win for our national team,” he added.
Jesus denied on Sunday that he had made any agreement with Ronaldo but left the door open for his return. The Portuguese Football Federation did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Ronaldo’s statement .
