Portugal national coach Jesus open to Ronaldo return

After early qualification for the quarter-finals of the Nations League, Portugal's national soccer coach Jorge Jesus has shown himself open to the return of superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. At least publicly. Jesus apparently doesn't want to be the man who ends the 41-year-old's national team career. He would have every reason to do so.

Portugal's record player and goalscorer left the national team during the week after he was not used in the 2-1 first leg in Norway and was not included in the starting eleven for the following game in Denmark (4-2). Ronaldo deserted; there can hardly be a more important reason for a coach to end the collaboration.

Jesus, who celebrates success after success without Ronaldo, apparently prefers a more subtle method. After the 2-1 win against Norway in Porto, he said: "For me, the next time Cris is called up - provided he plays for Al-Nassr - he is a candidate for the squad. If he wants to return, he will return."

Calling the great Ronaldo a candidate (assuming he has a regular place at the club) is nothing less than a slap in the face. Especially since the 72-year-old has to assume that the offended Ronaldo will hardly accept his invitation. Rather, the calculation is that the veteran star will give up on his own initiative.

And so Jesus, who had trained Ronaldo at Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia the previous season and led the club to the championship, spoke of a misunderstanding that could be easily cleared up. The decision about Ronaldo's return in November would not be his alone: ​​"I don't know what will happen. Cris is the one who will decide."

Portugal's association president Pedro Proença announced that he would mediate between Ronaldo and Jesus. “Now that these four games are over, we will all have the time and peace to sit down and resolve a misunderstanding.” So far, the 41-year-old Ronaldo has played 234 international matches for Portugal, in which he scored 146 goals - both records in international football.

Defending champion Portugal won all three Nations League games in the turbulent week without Ronaldo and is in the quarter-finals early. Gonçalo Ramos, who was called up as center forward instead of Ronaldo, also scored in all three games.

The players of the Portuguese national team publicly made an effort to show solidarity. The new captain Bruno Fernandes, for example, called Ronaldo “the greatest symbol of our national team, our football and our country.”

The two full-backs Nuno Mendes and João Cancelo also commented. “When Cris returns, we will welcome him with open arms,” Mendes said. Cancelo added: "I believe that things will end in the best possible way. We all want the situation to be resolved calmly and with the respect that Cristiano deserves."