Al Nassr forward Cristiano Ronaldo has left Portugal’s national team camp in Copenhagen ahead of their Nations League third-round match.
Portugal head coach Jorge Jesus said at a pre-match press conference that he did not intend to include the 41-year-old in the starting lineup against Denmark.
After leaving the national team camp, the captain said on social media that he made the decision following the head coach’s press conference and a conversation with the president of the Portuguese Football Federation. Ronaldo said he would later explain to the Portuguese people the reasons for his departure and wished the national team and all his teammates success.
According to published reports, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner has decided to end his career with Portugal, for whom he has played since 2003. He has made 234 appearances for the national team and scored 146 goals, making him the highest-scoring player in the history of international football.
Ronaldo remained on the bench for the entire Nations League match against Norway in the second round, without receiving any playing time. It was the first time in 18 years of his career that this had happened, with the previous instance coming in Portugal’s 2-0 defeat to Switzerland at Euro 2008.
In the first round, Ronaldo started against Wales but was substituted in the 67th minute.
Ronaldo’s announcement about his departure has led to two different pieces of information being reported. In one case, it concerns a specific decision to leave the national team camp, while in the other, it concerns published reports that he has ended his international career, which is not definitively confirmed in Ronaldo’s own statement. The distinction is important because in his message, the footballer only said that he had left the camp and would later explain the reasons for his decision.
His role in the last two matches had also changed: against Norway, he remained on the bench for the entire match, while ahead of the game against Denmark, the coach said he did not plan to include him in the starting lineup. Attention is now focused not only on the upcoming match but also on Ronaldo’s next statement, which could provide greater clarity about the reasons for his decision and the next stage of his relationship with the national team.
