Cristiano Ronaldo arrived in Madrid early on Thursday, only a few hours after leaving the Portugal squad ahead of schedule, as tensions surrounding his relationship with Jesus continued to dominate the team’s preparations.
The 41-year-old’s plane landed in the Spanish capital at about 01:20. He left the airport roughly 20 minutes later in a car with Portuguese number plates, according to Foot Mercato.
About 12 supporters managed to enter a restricted area of the airport by using an entrance intended for cars. They greeted Ronaldo with chants and applause and attempted to take photographs with him before he travelled on to his home in Madrid.
Spanish television programme El Chiringuito shared video footage of Ronaldo’s arrival on its official X account. The post was captioned: “Cristiano is already in Madrid. This is how he arrived after leaving the Portugal party.”
Ronaldo’s departure comes amid a highly strained atmosphere within the Portugal camp. The situation began when the forward remained on the substitutes’ bench for the entirety of Portugal’s previous match against Norway, which ended in a 2-1 victory for the Portuguese side.
The decision reportedly angered Ronaldo, who is captain of Saudi Al Nassr. He then refused to take part in training after the Norway game.
Ronaldo subsequently held a meeting with Jesus, and it appeared that the disagreement between the two had been resolved. However, Jesus later addressed the issue at a news conference before Portugal’s match against Denmark.
He said no player would change his way of thinking, and that no other person in football would do so either. Ronaldo then left the Portugal camp and travelled to Madrid.
