Jorge Jesus has kicked off his tenure as Portugal’s head coach with an impressive run, guiding the national side to victories over Wales and Norway in the UEFA Nations League. Yet, as the team prepares for Thursday’s encounter in Denmark, the focus has shifted to a tense, so‑called “crisis” meeting involving captain Cristiano Ronaldo.
The 41‑year‑old forward, who has been a fixture in Portugal’s starting eleven since his debut in 2003, was conspicuously absent from the action in Sunday’s 1‑0 win over Norway. Not only did he remain on the bench for the entire match, but he also missed the training sessions on Monday and Tuesday that followed. The Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) has not disclosed any injury or fitness problem to explain his exclusion. Ronaldo’s role in the national team has become a hotly debated topic in recent seasons.
After enjoying two decades as an automatic starter and collecting five Ballon d’Or trophies, he was surprisingly left out of the starting line‑up by former coach Fernando Santos during Portugal’s knockout games at the 2022 World Cup against Switzerland and Morocco. His successor, Roberto Martínez, promptly reinstated him, and Ronaldo started all ten of Portugal’s fixtures in the qualifying phase for Euro 2024 as well as the summer World Cup finals. While his long‑time rival Lionel Messi, now 39, is set to make his final appearance for Argentina next week, there is no indication that Ronaldo, who currently plies his trade with Al Nassr, intends to retire from international duty anytime soon. In a recent interview he hinted that he might hang up his club boots at the end of the next season, but he insisted that he still believes he can contribute to the national side.
"I’m a thinker. You have to think," Ronaldo said when asked about retirement after this World Cup. "That’s why you see me here now. It means I will continue.
I spoke with the FPF president and our coach. I still feel I can help the team reach its goals, and I’ll stop when I feel I’m no longer adding value." During the Wales game, Ronaldo recorded seven attempts on goal without finding the net before being substituted in the 65th minute for Gonçalo Ramos. Coach Jesus defended the decision, explaining that fresh legs were needed to press the Welsh centre‑backs and prevent them from building play from the back.
"Someone with more speed in the first line of defence was required," he said. Three days later, against Norway, Ronaldo remained an unused substitute. "Whether we like it or not, Cris isn’t like João Neves, who is 20 and can play every three days," Jesus remarked, highlighting the veteran’s need for more recovery time.
Although Jesus had initially indicated that Ronaldo would be involved in the match, he later concluded that the moment simply wasn’t right for the striker to enter the field. After the final whistle in Oslo, Ronaldo walked straight from the bench down the tunnel, bypassing the customary team acknowledgment of the visiting Portuguese supporters.
Anonymous sources told The Athletic that Ronaldo was visibly frustrated by his lack of playing time, noting that this was only the third occasion he had been left on the bench without coming on – the previous instances being a Euro 2008 group match (after Portugal had already qualified) and a friendly versus Croatia ahead of Euro 2024. The relationship between Jesus and Ronaldo has historically been strong. Prior to his appointment as national coach, Jesus spent a season at Al Nassr, where he guided Ronaldo to a Saudi Pro League title. The 72‑year‑old manager has said that his move to Saudi Arabia was largely motivated by Ronaldo’s invitation and his willingness to work with the star forward.
Nevertheless, Portuguese sports daily Record described the current situation as an "internal earthquake," and on Tuesday Ronaldo posted a photo of himself in national‑team training gear accompanied by a heart emoji and the Portuguese flag. The following day, newspaper A Bola featured the headline "situacao de crise" (crisis situation) on its front page, while outlet B24 reported that an "emergency" meeting had been arranged involving Ronaldo, Jesus and FPF president Pedro Proença.
According to the federation, the gathering was not a formal meeting but a direct conversation between Jesus and Ronaldo, aimed at clearing the air and reaffirming mutual respect. Publicly, Jesus has stressed that Ronaldo remains an essential figure for Portugal, regardless of whether he takes the field. At the start of the international break, Ronaldo told the media that some segments of the Portuguese public no longer wanted him in the squad. "I feel the Portuguese fans support me, but I understand that certain TV channels want to criticize me," he said.
"They’ve tried to kill me, but only with a shotgun. They want me out of the national team." Ronaldo’s statistics are unrivalled: 234 caps and 146 goals, the most appearances and goals ever recorded for a single nation. He has featured in twelve major tournaments, lifting the Euro 2016 trophy and securing Nations League titles in 2019 and 2024.
His status as a national icon is unquestionable, yet the debate over his future with Portugal persists, fueled by his age, recent benchings, and the emergence of younger talents. The upcoming Denmark match will likely serve as a litmus test for how the coaching staff balances respect for Ronaldo’s legacy with the practical demands of a competitive squad. Whether the crisis meeting resolves tensions or simply postpones a larger conversation about succession remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: the dialogue surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo’s place in the Portuguese national team will continue to dominate headlines for the foreseeable future.