Cristiano Ronaldo missed Portugal training after coach Jorge Jesus denied a tear

Portugal coach Jorge Jesus denied on Wednesday that Cristiano Ronaldo refused to train, although the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) confirmed that the striker did not take part in the team’s final session before the Nations League game against Denmark.

Portuguese newspaper A Bola published a video showing Ronaldo leaving Copenhagen’s Parken stadium in an FPF vehicle. And Bola said Ronaldo left shortly after Jesus said the 41-year-old would attend the session.

Spanish outlet Marca reported that Ronaldo intends to board a private flight to Madrid in the coming hours.

The FPF confirmed to Reuters Ronaldo did not take part in Wednesday’s training session, while Ronaldo’s representatives were not immediately available for comment.

Ronaldo did not play in Portugal’s 2-1 win over Norway on Sunday after Jesus told him he would come off the bench, but ultimately decided not to bring him on.

He then worked in the weight room on Monday and Tuesday rather than with the rest of the team, despite not being injured.

In a press conference ahead of Wednesday’s session, Jesus told reporters not to create controversy and said it was normal for Ronaldo to miss team training in the days after a game.

“He didn’t refuse. He will train today,” said Jesus.

“It’s day four so he’s going to train. And he didn’t refuse to train. That’s not possible. Do you believe that? No Cris.”

Jesus said there was no incident, although he confirmed he had spoken to Ronaldo about the situation.

“They made me talk to Cris about a problem that didn’t exist. There was nothing to talk about,” Jesus said.

“He said, ‘I’m here for you to decide. If you want me to play, I’ll play. If you want me to go to the stands, I’ll go’.”

The president of the Portuguese Football Federation, Pedro Proenca, traveled to Copenhagen on Tuesday. Portuguese newspaper A Bola reported that Proenca had changed his plans and traveled to Denmark to meet Jesus and Ronaldo ahead of Portugal’s Nations League match on Thursday.

Ronaldo is Portugal’s record goalscorer with 146 goals and their most watched player with 234 appearances. Ronaldo told a press conference last week that the media had been trying to “kill” him for years and said he could leave “today” if the manager didn’t want him in the squad.

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