JUST IN: Why I left Portugal camp — Ronaldo

Portugal's forward #07 Cristiano Ronaldo. (Photo by RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP)

Cristiano Ronaldo has given his full account of the events that led him to leave the Portugal national team camp, accusing coach Jorge Jesus of breaking his word on two occasions.

In a lengthy personal statement released on X on Tuesday the 41-year-old captain said he wanted to “recount, in the first person and directly, the circumstances surrounding the last training camp of the National Team.”

Ronaldo explained that after the 2026 World Cup he had prepared a farewell letter to the Portuguese people.

The Federation president Pedro Proença urged him to continue, and Ronaldo backed Jesus as the new coach.

“I told the President of the Federation that, in my opinion, it would be the right choice,” he wrote. “That is why, on the day the current head coach was presented, I was genuinely happy with the choice. It was the right option, as the results are confirming.”
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Jesus later met Ronaldo and outlined a plan. “He told me he was counting on me and that my presence was fundamental to his project. He presented me, right there, with a plan for my participation. He told me I would play the first match and the last one, and that for reasons of physical management he would always make three to four changes per match.”

An early suggestion that Ronaldo skip the Norway and Denmark trips was rejected. “I refused this proposal immediately. It seemed obvious to me that I could not accept it. It was not because I would not play the matches abroad that I would stop captaining our team. That privilege of staying in Portugal would not be a good example.”

Ronaldo played against Wales, was substituted, and handed the armband to Bruno Fernandes without complaint. On the day of the Norway match, however, the plan changed.

“To my absolute surprise, the coach asked me if I was fit to play 30 minutes. I was fully focused on my physical recovery… Without any problem. This request was something outside my physical recovery and training plan — because I was only going to play on the 4th at the Dragão — but of course I said yes. He replied that I should then be ready because I would play 30 minutes.

“The rest everyone knows. I warmed up from half-time, watched the minutes go by, and was not called. The coach had broken his word to me.”

Ronaldo apologised for not greeting the fans after the game, calling it “a failure that is only my responsibility.”

A later private meeting with Jesus and Al Nassr sporting director Simão Coutinho produced what Ronaldo described as an agreement: Jesus would publicly clarify the situation in the next press conference. Ronaldo said a short list of points was prepared and validated. The actual conference, he claimed, did not match what had been agreed.

“It was the second time that he was breaking the word he had given me. I decided to leave the camp without waiting for any further breach of word. For me, the truth is still the most important thing in relationships between people.”

Ronaldo apologised to his teammates and to the Portuguese public, accepted that the federation should punish the walkout without mitigating factors, and stressed that “the rules are equal for everyone.”

On his future, he rejected purely ceremonial farewell matches. “When I think about the national team, what I really think about is competing. Therefore, if I am physically well, playing at my club, scoring goals I hope, after serving the suspension that is applied to me, I will be available, as I always have been until today, to compete and win for our National Team.

“This is, believe me, the purest of truths.”

Gilbert Ekugbe

Gilbert Ekugbe is a journalist at Punch Newspapers with over a decade of experience reporting on business and economic affairs. He covers markets, corporate developments, finance, and Nigeria’s broader economic landscape. His reporting is informed by extensive newsroom experience and a strong commitment to accuracy and responsible journalism, helping readers understand complex business issues.

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