Ronaldo’s Portugal walkout is nothing new; he has a long history of rows with coaches
Was it always going to end like this? Cristiano Ronaldo — Portugal‘s greatest-ever player, who led them to victory at the 2016 UEFA European Championship, and won the UEFA Champions League and the Ballon d’Or five times in a glittering club career — walked away from the national team’s camp on Wednesday, leaving his international future in doubt.
Ronaldo, 41, has said he will “tell the truth to the Portuguese people” about the reasons for his departure, “in due time.” Hours earlier, coach Jorge Jesus had insisted there was “no issue,” but admitted mistakes in his handling of Ronaldo’s role in Sunday’s 2-1 win over Norway in the UEFA Nations League, where he was an unused substitute.
Until Ronaldo chooses to speak, we can only speculate about his motivation, and whether this means he has played his last game for Portugal. But an acrimonious end to his international career — during which he has scored a men’s record 146 goals — could hardly be described as a shock.
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Managing the transition when an ageing superstar’s performance level drops is never easy, and Ronaldo’s role and impact — positive and negative — with Portugal has been debated for three successive major tournaments now, in 2022, 2024 and 2026.
Throughout his 25-year career, Ronaldo has been involved in a series of headline-grabbing disagreements with managers, teammates and executives. As we wait for this latest drama to be resolved, here are some of the most high-profile previous examples.
Unhappy Ronaldo backs Blatter’s insensitive “slavery” comparison (July 10, 2008)
Ronaldo’s bid to leave Manchester United for Real Madrid that summer reached a new, histrionic high — or low — when Ronaldo echoed comments from then-FIFA president Sepp Blatter that keeping a player at a club against their will was comparable to “modern slavery.” Ronaldo told Portugal’s TV1: “It’s true. I agree with what the president of FIFA said. I know what I want and what I would like. We have to see what happens. I do not know where I will begin next season.” After five successful years at Old Trafford, Ronaldo was ready to move on, but United stood firm and the forward had to wait another season before his desired move to the Bernabéu was finally fulfilled.
Ronaldo subs himself off mid-game at Old Trafford (Dec. 6, 2008)
Ronaldo abruptly walked off the pitch — and headed straight down the tunnel — midway through Manchester United’s 1-0 win over Sunderland at Old Trafford. The team were left playing with 10 men, as United’s coaching staff rushed to organise an unexpected substitution. Manager Sir Alex Ferguson defended Ronaldo, saying he had received “a kick on the hip” and “there was no need for Cristiano to come to the bench” when he required immediate treatment, but it was clear that the player — who had won his first Ballon d’Or earlier that week — was increasingly willing to act out.
Derby withdrawal sparks bout of Ronaldo head-shaking (May 10, 2009)
Ronaldo’s reaction to another substitution, this time in the heated atmosphere of a Manchester derby, was the latest sign of a growing estrangement between him and the club. He had put United ahead against City with an 18th-minute free kick — the first goal of a 2-0 victory — but when Ferguson opted to replace him with Paul Scholes on the hour, Ronaldo reacted furiously. He spent several minutes shaking his head in frustration on the bench in a very public, visible showing of discontent. That opening goal proved to be his last for the club for 12 years.
No celebrations for “sad” Ronaldo (Sept. 2, 2012)
Three years on from finally getting his desired move to Real Madrid, new signs of dissatisfaction emerged. Ronaldo had scored twice in a 3-0 LaLiga win over Granada, but was he happy? No, he wasn’t. The lack of a goal celebration for either strike raised eyebrows, and his enigmatic postmatch comments set alarm bells ringing. “I’m sad because of a professional issue, and the club know it,” Ronaldo revealed, mysteriously. “That’s why I’m not celebrating my goals, because I’m not happy. The people here know why.” The forward refused to elaborate, and an explanation for his ennui was never forthcoming. Ronaldo subsequently denied that money was the problem, but a bumper new contract that was eventually signed a year later might have helped.
Mourinho hits back at ‘know-it-all’ Ronaldo (June 5, 2013)
Ronaldo and manager José Mourinho were close when the two first worked together at Real Madrid, but — in a developing trend — their relationship was deteriorating by the end of the 2012-13 season, Mourinho’s last at the Bernabéu. A dressing room bust-up after a Copa del Rey game with Valencia in January was the beginning of the end and by June, after dropping the forward for the last few games of the season, Mourinho was telling TV show Punto Pelota after leaving Los Blancos for a second spell at Chelsea that “Cristiano Ronaldo thinks he knows everything.”
Ronaldo prefers Carlo to Rafa (Dec. 11, 2015)
Rafa Benítez was in charge at Real Madrid for only six months after replacing Carlo Ancelotti in June 2015 and getting sacked the next January, but there was still time for his relationship with Ronaldo to come under scrutiny. There was speculation that the player was unhappy with his manager’s tactical approach, and Ronaldo’s fulsome praise for predecessor Ancelotti — calling him an “unbelievable person” and a “fantastic coach” (and, rather endearingly, a “big bear”) whom he “wished to work with again” probably didn’t help. Benítez insisted that he and the star were still “adapting to each other,” but there wasn’t time for that: A month later, Benítez was gone.
Ronaldo benched ahead of United move (Aug. 22, 2021)
Just a few days before the 2018 World Cup final (in which Portugal were not involved), Ronaldo’s move to Juventus after nine years in Madrid was announced. But, after three years in Turin, Ronaldo was ready to move again. He was left out of the team for the Italian giants’ Serie A opener for the 2021-22 season, a 2-2 draw at Udinese, after reportedly asking not to start the match. Juventus were insistent that the forward would stay, and Ronaldo himself had earlier branded reports linking him with a move back to Real Madrid as “disrespectful.” However, just over a week later, he was on his way back to Manchester United on transfer deadline day having been heavily linked with joining rivals City.
Ronaldo is no fan of three at the back (Jan. 19, 2022)
If we’ve learned anything so far, it’s that Ronaldo isn’t keen on being substituted. Manchester United interim coach Ralf Rangnick found that out when looking to protect the team’s 2-0 lead at Brentford by replacing Ronaldo with Harry Maguire and switching to a back three. Ronaldo wasn’t a fan of the tactical change, throwing his coat to the ground as he departed, before Rangnick had to have a word. The reaction was “normal,” Rangnick said, adding: “I said maybe when you’re a head coach yourself you will hopefully make the same decision.” The coach was proved right: United went on to win 3-1.
‘Nonsense’ reports of Maguire captaincy battle (Feb. 18, 2022)
A month later, Rangnick was called upon to dismiss claims of a rift between Ronaldo and defender Maguire as “absolute nonsense.” The issue at stake was reportedly the United captaincy, with skipper Maguire feeling threatened by Ronaldo’s outsized influence in the dressing room among younger players. Rangnick sought to quash that, saying, “I have never spoken with any player about a possible change of captaincy,” and insisting Maguire would continue in his role until the end of the season.
Explosive interview forces Ronaldo’s second Old Trafford exit (Nov. 13, 2022)
After a start to the season that saw Ronaldo’s goals dry up and his first-team place rescinded by new manager Erik ten Hag, Ronaldo’s clear frustration came to a head when on Oct. 21 when he refused to come on as a substitute against Tottenham Hotspur, walked off down the tunnel and left Old Trafford before the final whistle — something he also did during a preseason friendly with Rayo Vallecano.
His departure from United was finally sealed by a no-holds-barred interview with Piers Morgan. Ronaldo criticised just about everybody at Old Trafford — saying he “didn’t respect” Ten Hag, felt “betrayed” by senior executives, had “never heard of” Rangnick before his arrival and “zero progress” had been made since his first stint at the club. If the comprehensive takedown was designed to make his own position at United untenable, then it was a success, with the club agreeing to a departure by mutual agreement.
Ronaldo axed by Portugal, family reacts angrily (Dec. 6, 2022)
Ronaldo was dropped by coach Fernando Santos for Portugal’s World Cup round-of-16 tie against Switzerland, and his replacement, Gonçalo Ramos, more than justified the decision, scoring a hat trick in a 6-1 win. Santos claimed the selection was based on “strategy,” rather than Ronaldo’s angry reaction to being substituted in Portugal’s final group game, although Santos had previously said of his captain’s outburst: “I didn’t like it.”
The Portuguese football federation (FPF) was then moved to deny reports that things had escalated before their quarterfinal against Morocco. “The FPF clarifies that at no time did the captain of the national team, Cristiano Ronaldo, threaten to leave the national team at any stage,” it said in a statement.
Unsurprisingly, Ronaldo’s omission didn’t go well with the extended Ronaldo family. “What a shame not to have been able to enjoy the best player in the world for 90 minutes,” partner Georgina Rodríguez said in a post on Instagram, and sister Elma Aveiro added: “It’s a shame to humiliate a man who has given so much.”
Ronaldo storms out of Portugal camp (Sept. 30, 2026)
And so here we are, waiting for Ronaldo to expand on the reasons for his latest walkout.
At the time of writing, we know that his exit followed a lack of minutes against Norway on Sunday, and then coach Jesus giving his version of events in a news conference three days later. Ronaldo, according to his own statement, then held “a conversation with the president of the Portuguese Football Federation.” He also felt the need to wish his teammates “good luck, without exception” in Thursday’s Nations League game with Denmark.
The last four years have been relatively calm by Ronaldo standards, with the forward scoring lots of goals — and winning a couple of trophies — with Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, and benefitting from a national team coach, Roberto Martínez, who backed him persistently at two major tournaments, despite growing criticism.
Jesus worked with Ronaldo at Al Nassr, but on this week’s evidence, their relationship appears much less comfortable. We’ll find out soon enough if it signals the end of a 23-year international career.