Will Cristiano Ronaldo get a Portugal send-off?

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Last week, Ronaldo took to his Instagram account last night to post a statement to his 679 million followers, explaining, “After the press conference of the National Team coach, and following a conversation with the President of the Portuguese Football Federation, I decided to leave the National Team camp.

“In due time, I will tell all the Portuguese about the reasons that motivated my departure from the national team, which I always dedicated myself to. Now it’s time to wish good luck to Portugal and all my teammates, without exception.”

There are currently no plans for Ronaldo to reconcile with the national team – even for a one-off fixture.

According to Spanish outlet Marca, the 41-year-old threw his toys out of the pram coach Jorge Jesus, who changed his mind about his selection plans during the recent international break.

The Portuguese, meanwhile, haven’t appeared to have missed Ronaldo, beating Norway yesterday 2-1, with some stunning, free-flowing football on show in Porto.

More concerningly for Ronaldo, it was his replacement Goncalo Ramos who got the winning goal, just as it was in 2022 when CR7 was dropped for the young striker to net a hat-trick in the knockout rounds of the tournament.

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While Lionel Messi is getting his ‘Last Tango’ there have been calls for his ideological opposite to have a similar final appearance, if he really is to retire from international duty.

However, influencer Fabrizio Romano has claimed in a post on Instagram that this isn’t the case.

“Cristiano Ronaldo has left Europe and returned to Riyadh after tense discussions last Wednesday, waiting to clarify his future with Portuguese national team following tonight’s game,” Romano posted yesterday.

“Al Nassr plan to restart training with Cristiano this week.

“Ronaldo and Jorge Jesus will both clarify their positions [soon,] ahead of [a] final verdict on future chapters with Portugal.”

Bruno Fernandes has assumed the captaincy in Ronaldo’s absence.

Mark White Content Editor Mark White has been at on FourFourTwo since joining in January 2020, first as a staff writer before becoming content editor in 2023. An encyclopedia of football shirts and boots knowledge – both past and present – Mark has also represented FFT at both FA Cup and League Cup finals (though didn’t receive a winners’ medal on either occasion) and has written pieces for the mag ranging on subjects from Bobby Robson’s season at Barcelona to Robinho’s career. He has written cover features for the mag on Mikel Arteta and Martin Odegaard, and is assisted by his cat, Rosie, who has interned for the brand since lockdown.

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