Portugal captain, Cristiano Ronaldo, has left the national team’s training camp in Copenhagen amid reported tensions with head coach Jorge Jesus ahead of their UEFA Nations League clash against Denmark.
Ronaldo reportedly departed the stadium where Portugal were preparing for Thursday’s encounter shortly after Jesus told reporters that the forward would take part in Wednesday’s training session.
The situation follows Portugal’s 2-1 Nations League victory over Norway, in which Ronaldo remained on the bench for the entire match while Joao Felix and Goncalo Ramos started.
The forward was reportedly frustrated by the decision and went straight to the dressing room after the final whistle.
Jesus had earlier admitted that he mishandled Ronaldo’s warm-up during the Norway game, saying, “That’s where I made a mistake; I should have had him warm up about 15 minutes later. I didn’t know what was going to happen, I started watching the game, and I didn’t bring him on.”
The manager said he had initially agreed with Ronaldo that the veteran would not play in Portugal’s first two matches, but his decision to ask him to warm up during the Norway encounter contributed to the situation.
Portuguese Football Federation president Pedro Proenca subsequently held an emergency meeting with Ronaldo and Jesus as efforts were made to address the disagreement.
Jesus insisted that Ronaldo had not refused to train, saying, “He didn’t refuse to train… Do you think a national team player would refuse to train?”
He also maintained that he remained in charge of team selection, declaring, “No player will make me change my mind. Not him, not anyone in football. Not any president. Never, absolutely no one.”
However, Ronaldo was later seen leaving Parken Stadium in a black van, with his private jet reportedly heading to Denmark to take him back to Madrid.
Portugal are scheduled to face Denmark on Thursday without Ronaldo, with the circumstances surrounding his departure raising further questions about his immediate future with the national team.
