Portugal coach 'knew nothing' about Ronaldo retiring

Published5 hours ago

Portugal coach Jorge Jesus said he "found out when we all did" about Cristiano Ronaldo's retirement from international football.

The 41-year-old made the announcement in an Instagram video, external on Thursday, the day before Jesus was due to announce his squad for this month's Nations League fixtures.

Speaking at Friday's news conference, Jesus said that Ronaldo did not give him prior notice of his decision and he was set to select the in-form Al-Nassr forward.

"I found out when we all did," Jesus said. "Until then, I knew nothing about it.

"He was playing, he was scoring goals; he was one of the players on my squad list."

Ronaldo was available again after serving a 30-day suspension from international duty - a period that did not include any national team games.

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner had left the Portugal camp in September after being told he would not start the Nations League match against Denmark four days later.

Ronaldo later said that Jesus had "broken his word" but accepted he deserved to be punished for his premature departure and claimed that, at that time, he would not be retiring from international football.

Jesus became visibly annoyed on Friday as journalists pressed him about that dispute.

"All my decisions were made with the team in mind," he said.

"As a manager, I have always defended what was best for the team. I am at peace with my decision."

Ronaldo had been an unused substitute against Norway on 27 September so his final international appearance was three days earlier, in a 1-0 win over Wales in Lisbon.

That took his international record to 146 goals from 234 games for Portugal - both men's world records - since making his debut in 2003. He also helped his country win Euro 2016.

While Jesus said he had not contacted Ronaldo since his announcement, the president of the Portuguese Football Federation (PFF) pledged to honour the former Real Madrid and Manchester United forward.

"No tribute will ever be enough to thank him for everything he has done for Portuguese football, for Portugal," said Pedro Proenca.

"The best way to honour and celebrate him is to honour his boundless ambition, to always play to win, to never be afraid of being the best in the world.

"Thank you for everything, captain. This is and always will be your home."

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