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 -- 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. 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.
Throughout his 25-year career, Ronaldo has been involved in a series of headline-grabbing disagreements with managers, teammates and executives. Unhappy Ronaldo backed Sepp Blatter's insensitive "slavery" comparison in 2008. Ronaldo subs himself off mid-game at Old Trafford in 2008, and a Derby withdrawal sparked a bout of Ronaldo head-shaking in 2009. No celebrations for "sad" Ronaldo occurred in 2012.
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.
Source: ESPN Soccer · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing