&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Cristiano Ronaldo to retire from international football? Portuguese star says 'I wish Portugal good luck and will reveal truth later'")
Cristiano Ronaldo has broken his silence over his decision to leave the Portugal camp ahead of the UEFA Nations League clash against Denmark, saying he will reveal the reasons behind his departure in due course. The Portugal captain issued a statement on his official social media accounts after leaving the national team's base in Denmark, with his private jet reportedly preparing to take him back to Madrid. "After the national team coach's press conference, and after a conversation with the president of the Portuguese Football Federation, I decided to leave the national team camp," Ronaldo wrote.
He added, “In due course, I will tell all Portuguese people the truth about the reasons that led me to leave the national team to which I have always dedicated myself.” Ronaldo ended his statement by wishing the team and his teammates well. “Now is the right time to wish good luck to Portugal and to all my team-mates, without exception.”
The news came as Ronaldo spent a third consecutive day away from regular training, further increasing the tension surrounding the Portugal camp. The exit came just minutes after coach Jorge Jesus insisted during his pre-match press conference that Ronaldo would take part in the training session in Copenhagen. According to Portuguese newspaper A Bola, Ronaldo left Copenhagen's Parken stadium in a car belonging to the Portuguese Football Federation just as his teammates started coming onto the pitch. Francisco Conceicao was also absent.
Jesus had earlier confirmed that Ronaldo would train but suggested that the 41-year-old striker could once again be left out of the starting XI. "Yesterday, he did not refuse to train," Jesus said. “Francisco Conceicao did not train because he was injured, and Joao Felix because we were trying to ease the fatigue, while Cristiano did work in the gym. Today he will train. It is the fourth day, so he will train.”
The coach also made it clear that he would have the final say on team selection, regardless of the status or stature of any player. “I can promise what I want. I am the coach. I told the player that he would not start the match, and that he would be on the substitutes' bench. If I need him for 30 minutes he will play, and if I do not need him he will not play. No player will change my thinking, neither him nor anyone else in football, not even any president, that will never happen.”
