The star of the Portuguese national team Cristiano Ronaldo explained in detail why he left the team's camp, as according to him, the coach Jorge Jesus broke promises.
The 41-year-old footballer left the Portuguese national team after the coach decided not to let him play in the Nations League match against Norway, which took place on September 27. Then there were reports that the striker had decided not to play for the national team anymore.
„At the end of the match, I just wanted everything to end with a victory and to be left alone. I did not go to congratulate the fans. This is a mistake for which the responsibility is entirely mine and which should not have happened. I apologize to the Portuguese who supported us so much, I apologize to the fans and I apologize to those who, without being Portuguese, may have come to see me and whom I may have disappointed," Ronaldo began.
"48 hours later we had a conversation - me, the coach and Simão Coutinho (Al-Nasr's sporting director), because it was he who was present at our conversations in August. It was a very frank conversation. We agreed that there was only one way to end this situation - the coach had to repeat in the press room what he had just told me in private, in the presence of Simão Coutinho."
"The agreement was simple, the coach would start the press conference with this topic and try to close the issue by telling the truth. He should have said that I never asked to be let out for even a few minutes, that it was the coach, not anyone else, who suggested the plan for this camp, and that it was a mistake to send me out to warm up if he didn't intend to let me out on the pitch in the end. And that if something like that happened again, he wouldn't do it again," Ronaldo said.
"We ended the meeting with the coach asking me to hug him and promising that he would say the same thing at the press conference that he had just told me and that after that the matter would be closed. I wasn't supposed to play in Denmark, but I had to go out on the pitch in the “Drago“ match. All this, as always, happened in the presence of Simão Coutinho."
"At the request of the coach, a video conference was held between him, Simão Coutinho and Thiago Craveiro (Ronaldo's advisor), during which what was discussed was summarized. A short document was prepared, which I personally checked, and with my knowledge it was handed over to the coach, as he had requested. Everyone knows how the press conference went: the statements made there had nothing to do with our meeting, his behavior did not correspond to our meeting at all. I heard expressions and an aggressive tone that, it seems to me, I absolutely do not deserve. It was a position in the spirit of “I want, I can, I decide“, which he did not even briefly show in private conversations the day before."
My theses, agreed with him, were the following:
The coach should have said: “I think it is important to clarify a few points before we talk about the match with Denmark, especially since this is the truth. I personally, without anyone else's participation, proposed to Cristiano a plan for this season in the national team. It was a long and very good conversation. I know how much he loves the national team, as well as what importance it has in world football. I even know what weight and positive influence he has had on the national team for 24 consecutive years. Cristiano accepted the plan I proposed.
He never once doubted my decisions. I behaved in an exemplary, dedicated and professional manner. The match with Norway was not part of the plan I had drawn up for him. However, I felt that he had recovered physically after the first game, and I told him that maybe I should let him go. Cristiano agreed.
I made a mistake by sending a player of the level of Pele and Maradona to warm up and then not letting him on the pitch. If it were happening today, I wouldn't have done that. In conclusion: I want Cristiano to play for the national team. In fact, I don't just want him, I really want him. Fortunately, he also believes in me. He believed in me at Al-Nassr and he believes in me now. As for not greeting the fans. We've already talked about that. A player who has played over 230 games for the national team doesn't need my lessons on loving Portugal. It was a moment of disappointment that doesn't erase anything. He is the player who signs the most autographs, takes the most photos with the fans and shows the most attention to them. Let's not invent problems where there aren't any. When we are unhappy with something, we react. That's all.“
So, none of these statements even mentioned that the coach should apologize to me. This was the second time he broke his word to me.
I decided to leave the camp without waiting for new unfulfilled promises. For me, the truth still remains the most important thing in relationships between people. No matter how much it hurts me, I want to be told the truth.
Moreover, during the conversation with the president of the Portuguese Football Federation and the coach on the morning of that press conference, they can certainly confirm it - I said once again that if they didn't want me to be in the national team, let them just tell me. It was enough for them to be honest with me. I would accept it and I would promise that together we would prepare something grandiose, and no one would be offended.
I remember that conversation as if it had taken place today. They answered in unison: no. Your place is in the national team.
In almost 25 years of my career, I have never interfered in the technical or tactical decisions of the national team's coaches and mentors. "I accept what they offer me to do, whether I like it or not. I respect the decisions, but when people don't keep their word, I feel like I have no place in this team," Ronaldo said.