Cristiano Ronaldo finally reveals why he walked out of Portugal team, lists ‘broken promises’

Cristiano Ronaldo has finally broken silence over why he walked out of the Portugal team after his dispute with coach Jorge Jesus.

In his around 2,000-word statement to his 679 million Instagram followers, Portuguese football star accused Jesus of breaking a number of promises that he made.

Ronaldo left the national team squad in Copenhagen ahead of a Nations League match against Denmark following a dispute over playing time. He was an unused substitute in a 2-1 win against Norway on September 27.

The 41-year-old accused the manager of breaking his word twice, first by promising he would play 30 minutes against Norway and then failing to bring him on after a lengthy warm-up, and later by failing to adhere to an agreed-upon summary of their private meeting during a press conference.

"Everyone knows the rest. I warmed up from half-time onwards, watched the minutes tick by and wasn't called on. The coach had broken his word to me,” Ronaldo said.

Ronaldo apologized for walking out of the camp, failing to acknowledge travelling fans with his teammates after the match and disrupting the squad. In the statement, he accepted full responsibility and asked the Portuguese Football Federation to punish him without leniency.

"I apologise to the Portuguese who supported us intensely there, I apologise to the fans, and I apologise to those who, without being Portuguese, may have travelled there to see me and whom I may have disappointed,” the statement reads.

Disputed 8-point agreement

In the statement, he also revealed an eight-point document that was agreed upon after a meeting between himself, Jesus and Al Nassr sporting director Simao Coutinho detailing what Jesus should say publicly.

Ronaldo claimed Jesus failed to keep up his words regarding this agreement during his public press conference.

"I heard expressions and an aggressiveness that I do not believe I deserved, an attitude of 'I want, I can and I command' that he never showed me, not even remotely, in private the day before," said Ronaldo.

He added, "It was the second time he had broken his word to me. I decided to leave the training camp without waiting for any further broken promises."

No international retirement

Al-Nassr forward clarified that he is not retiring from the Portugal national team while intending to remain available to compete and win if he is physically well and after serving any potential suspension.

Ronaldo promised that he will eventually have proper farewell matches to end his international career on the right terms, but emphasized that his primary focus remains on competing.

“I can promise all my fans, naturally and especially all Portuguese people, that we will have one or more farewell matches; there will be time for that. But when I think of the national team, what I really think of is competing.”