Portugal beat Switzerland strongly in the round of 16 matches on Wednesday. Fernando Santos’s side thrashed the Group G runners-up 6-1 at the Lusail Stadium. But more than the result, Santos’ bold decision to sell Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo made headlines.
Santos was trending on Twitter as soon as it became clear that the former Manchester United star was not in Portugal’s starting XI for the blockbuster match. Now a post-match video of Ronaldo has created a stir on the internet.
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In the revealing video, the 37-year-old can be seen walking off the pitch at full-time as his teammates celebrate a stunning 6-1 win over Switzerland with fans. The video has gone viral on Twitter and fans are splitting the clip left and centre.
It was clear that while the entire Portugal squad was celebrating their memorable victory, Ronaldo decided to leave his teammates behind and walk alone through the tunnel. After the match, Portugal’s coach said that Ronaldo was benched for tactical reasons, not for disciplinary reasons.
“Cristiano and Ramos are different players. No problem with our captain. We have been friends for years. We spoke before the match and he had no problem with my decision.
Portugal coach Fernando Santos says Cristiano Ronaldo was benched for tactical reasons and not for disciplinary reasons. “Cristiano and Ramos are different players. No problem with our captain. We have been friends for years. We spoke before the match and he had no problem with my decision.” pic.twitter.com/ofq3EQpOCw— Ben Jacobs (@JacobsBen) December 6, 2022
Despite assurances from Santos, Ronaldo’s behavior after the match raised many questions. It seems that all is not well in the Portugal camp and their charismatic striker is not happy.
Things weren’t great even before the Switzerland match. In Portugal’s final group game against South Korea, Ronaldo reacted angrily after being substituted midway through the second half.
Watch: Goncalo Ramos’ stunning hat-trick against Switzerland on FIFA World cup debut
As a result, Santos openly expressed his displeasure with Ronaldo’s behavior as the forward left the pitch against South Korea and also refused to guarantee that the 37-year-old would captain Portugal against Switzerland. Will do
After Wednesday’s match, Ronaldo’s place in the team looks even more shaky. Goncalo Ramos, who replaced Ronaldo in the starting XI, produced an impressive hat-trick against Switzerland. The 21-year-old Benfica player opened the scoring for Portugal before finding the net twice more in the second half. It will be interesting to see whether Santos continues to back Ramos over Ronaldo for the quarter-finals against Morocco.
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