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DOHA, Qatar – Cristiano Ronaldo, who came on as a substitute in Portugal’s 6-1 round of 16 victory against Switzerland in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, praised the Seleçao’s “unity” on social media Thursday, after the Portuguese federation (FPF) he denied threatening to leave Qatar.
In the caption of a photo of him and his teammates celebrating a goal, ‘CR7’ wrote: ‘A group too united to be broken up by outside forces. A nation too brave to be intimidated by an opponent. A team in true sense of the word, fighting for his dream to the end! Believe with us! Come on Portugal! »
The striker then trained with his side’s substitutes against Morocco on Saturday, AFP reporters noted. Only central defender Ruben Dias was missing, who had a specific job indoors, said a selection spokesman.
Shortly before, the FPF had assured in a press release “that at no time did the captain of the national team, Cristiano Ronaldo, (had) threaten to leave the national team” during an “interview with Fernando Santos, the national team coach” .
When asked about his illustrious team-mate’s words at the press conference, midfielder Otavio said they were “completely correct”. “Nothing that comes from outside can separate us. We are very united and focused on playing for Portugal and winning,” he added.
“There was no discussion of his departure” in the team, continued Otavio. “Everything is quite normal, there have been no discussions or anything like that. It’s perfectly natural to be a little bitter when you’re not playing, but that’s the way it is. »
“Heart and Soul”
“If you look at the pictures, you’ll see that Cristiano’s heart and soul are with the national team, whether he plays or not,” he insisted.
The FPF’s denial came in response to an article in Portuguese sports newspaper Record, which wrote on Thursday that “Cristiano Ronaldo has threatened to quit”.
According to Record, the 37-year-old had a heated exchange with his coach after learning he was coming on as a substitute against Switzerland, which led him to threaten to quit the selection, before changing his mind and calming down.
“The degree of commitment of the player with the most caps in the history of Portugal was demonstrated again – if necessary – in the victory against Switzerland, in the round of 16 of the 2022 World Cup”, writes the FPF.
Ronaldo, who hadn’t been on the bench since 2008 in the selection, came on in the 75th minute without affecting the match. At the end of the match he briefly greeted the fans before going to the locker room.
After the match, “CR7” had received the support of his relatives and especially his partner Georgina Rodriguez.
“As the eleven players sang the hymn, all the targets were on you. Too bad we couldn’t enjoy the best player in the world for 90 minutes. Fans kept clamoring and yelling your name,” she wrote on Instagram.
