Jorge Jesus has rejected reports of a dispute with Cristiano Ronaldo, insisting the Portugal captain’s omission against Norway was part of an agreement between the pair.
Ronaldo started Portugal’s 1-0 victory over Wales but was substituted in the 67th minute, with Goncalo Ramos taking his place. Jesus had said before the 2-1 win against Norway that he expected Ronaldo to feature, but the 41-year-old remained an unused substitute.
Ronaldo subsequently trained separately from his team-mates on Monday and Tuesday, prompting reports that Jesus, Ronaldo and Portugal Football Federation (FPF) president Pedro Proenca had held a “crisis” meeting to resolve tensions.
Jesus, who also managed Ronaldo at Al-Nassr, dismissed those suggestions during a news conference before Portugal’s match against Denmark on Thursday.
“I don’t have one player; I have 23 players,” he said.
“Regarding Ronaldo, let me ask two questions; I won’t answer any more. The main thing is Denmark.
“It’s true that I made an agreement with him, just like I made a plan with Bruno Fernandes. I told Cris that he wouldn’t play in the games in Norway and Denmark.
“I know his physical condition well; I was with him in Saudi Arabia. In games every three days, he rarely played. He never trained on the first and second days after the games.”
Jesus said his decisions during a match could change according to the circumstances, even if he had previously agreed that Ronaldo would not start or play.
“I agreed with him. That’s what happened. I don’t go to the bench thinking that, at the 60th minute, I’m going to take Carlos Daniel off. That’s not how I am on the bench,” he added.
“The game dictates what I’m going to do. I agreed that he wouldn’t play, but I might also need him in the final minutes… If the game required it.
“I worked with Cris for a year. It seems like there’s already something going on between me and him. Don’t make a big deal out of it; there’s nothing going on. It was the same plan with Bruno Fernandes.
“Status is one thing; the rules are another.”
Asked once more about the reported friction, Jesus acknowledged that players can be unhappy when they warm up without being introduced.
“Any player who warms up and then doesn’t come on – no one is happy,” he said.
“Much less Cris, Pele, [Diego] Maradona. ‘Warm up for thirty minutes, me?’ Then, as the coach, I decided they weren’t included.”
Portugal have collected six points from their opening two Nations League matches and lead Group A4 as they prepare to face Denmark in Copenhagen.
Denmark are third in the group. They lost 3-2 to Norway before beating Wales 2-0 in their most recent match.
