Lewis Shaw

🚨Jorge Jesus on Cristiano Ronaldo’s role for Portugal against Denmark: 🗣️ Jorge Jesus: “I respect Cristiano Ronaldo enormously, but respect does not mean he has to be the main character every time Portugal plays. Cristiano is 41 now. He is not the same player he was at 25, 28 or even 32, and pretending otherwise would be unfair to him and unfair to the team. I didn’t call him up because I believe Portugal must play every match around him. I called him because he still has experience, personality and a level of leadership that can be valuable to this group. “But against Denmark, if I need players to press for 90 minutes, run behind the defence, recover the ball and constantly change positions, I will choose the players who can give me that today. I am not going to put Cristiano on the pitch simply because his name is Ronaldo. That would be managing the reputation of a player rather than managing the national team. If I need him for 20 minutes, he plays 20. If I need him for 30, he plays 30. And if I don’t need him, he can sit beside me and help the younger players understand what it means to represent Portugal. “Cristiano has already had his time as the player everyone had to build around. He doesn’t need me to pretend otherwise. His greatest contribution now may not be scoring the winning goal or playing every minute. It may be walking into that dressing room, looking at the younger players and telling them what he learned after 20 years at the highest level. That is leadership too. I want him to understand that being important doesn’t always mean being on the pitch. “And I know some people will be angry because they hear ‘Cristiano Ronaldo’ and immediately think he must play. But I cannot select a player because of his history. I select him because of what he can give me today. Cristiano gave Portugal extraordinary moments, but those moments belong to the past. Against Denmark, I need to win the match in the present. If that means Cristiano starts, he starts. If it means he sits, he sits. Portugal owes Cristiano respect, but Portugal owes the team the truth.”