Portugal captain, Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly left the national team’s training camp after feeling “betrayed” by coach Jorge Jesus over the handling of his omission during a recent match.
Spanish sports journalist, Edu Aguirre, made the claim on Thursday while speaking on the football talk show El Chiringuito de Jugones.
Ronaldo’s decision to leave the camp had raised questions about his relationship with the national team after reports that he had spent about 30 minutes warming up without eventually being introduced.
According to Aguirre, Jesus later held a private meeting with Ronaldo and apologised for the decision, promising to publicly acknowledge his mistake.
“There was a meeting yesterday, Tuesday night. A meeting between the president of the Federation, the manager and Cristiano.
“Jorge Jesus apologised to Cristiano for the disrespect of making him warm up for 30 minutes and not even bringing him on.
“And he didn’t just apologise to him in private; he told him that he would apologise publicly. That he would publicly admit he was wrong. That was Jorge Jesus’s promise to Cristiano,” Aguirre said.
However, Aguirre claimed that Jesus subsequently made comments at a press conference that contradicted the apology he had allegedly made privately to Ronaldo.
“Then he goes to the press conference and tells all these lies that nobody believes.
“That is why Cristiano exploded. Cristiano exploded because he felt betrayed,” he said.
Aguirre said Ronaldo was particularly upset because he had expected Jesus to address the incident publicly after apologising to him in private.
He explained, “Your manager comes to you in private: ‘Hey, look, it’s like this. Come on, understand me. Okay, I didn’t handle it well. We’re in this together. Forgive me, and when I have the press conference I’ll clarify it, I’ll apologise. Don’t worry, everything will be fine, everything will be resolved.’
“Then 12 hours later you go to the press conference and make Cristiano look even worse, saying that you are in charge, and that Cristiano is just another player.”
Aguirre described the development as a “betrayal”, saying Ronaldo’s reaction was linked to the alleged change in Jesus’ position following their private meeting.
Ronaldo’s departure also prompted a reaction from his sister, Katia Aveiro, who criticised Portugal following the development.
Jesus has meanwhile denied reports of a rift with Ronaldo amid the speculation surrounding the captain’s departure from the camp.
Aguirre’s latest claims have not been independently verified.
