The moment Cristiano Ronaldo left the Portuguese football camp midway through the international break, the football community was shell-shocked. Jorge Jesus suddenly came under scrutiny for his treatment of the legendary forward. Many criticised Jesus, but some supported his bold decisions. Portugal have won four matches in a row under his guidance and looked a better unit on the field compared to their underperformance in the FIFA World Cup 2026.
The dispute started last week when Jesus kept 41-year-old Ronaldo on the bench during Portugal’s win over Norway. After finding out he would not start against Denmark, Ronaldo left the team on Wednesday. In Ronaldo’s absence, Portugal became the first team to secure a place in the quarter-finals, with two group games still to play.
Meanwhile, Ronaldo’s former teammate Rio Ferdinand, who often supports him and is a close friend, criticised Jesus for misjudging the situation.
Ferdinand believes Jesus must publicly admit his mistake over the Ronaldo situation and warns that failing to do so could cost the Portugal coach his job.
“The coach has to apologise, otherwise he will be sacked,” he said on his own “Rio Ferdinand Presents” podcast. “He needs to come out publicly and say: I admit I misjudged this situation.”
The former Manchester United defender stated that if the Ronaldo situation didn’t get solved in time, their social media followers will hit rock bottom soon.
“The number of followers will reach 10 million tomorrow if things carry on like this,” he added.
“Portugal have to sit down with Cristiano Ronaldo”
Ferdinand said Jesus should have a direct conversation with Ronaldo and clearly explain his plans for the Portugal captain’s role going forward.
“They have to sit down with Cristiano Ronaldo and tell him: this is what I want to do, and if you don’t want to be part of it, tell me, but this is how things are going to go,” he said.
The Englishman further backed Ronaldo’s continued involvement with Portugal, but said Jesus needs to decide how best to use him while balancing the team’s needs with managing the veteran forward.
“I believe in him,” he added. “The question here is: will he be a starter, or an impactful substitute in matches, or a starter in some matches and a substitute in others? That is the conversation that needs to be had.”
“These coaches get paid to manage a team, but they also get paid to manage individuals,” he said.