The Portuguese coach obviously explained himself on the case of his captain (and on the controversy released by the media on the fact that he asked to leave the selection when he learned that he would be a substitute before the 8th finals) yesterday at a press conference.
“He never told me he wanted to leave the national team and I think it’s high time we stopped the controversy. Yes, we had a conversation and it would have been a very bad thing not to have one. He is the captain of our team, we know what he represents for Portuguese football, for the Portuguese people, for the team, I had to talk to him. I explained to him why he would not play. I explained it to him so that he would not be surprised (…) I told him that he would have an important role, but that he would not start and that I would keep him for the second period. Obviously, he was not very happy, because he always started, and he asked me if I thought it was a good idea. But it was a normal conversation, where I explained my point of view to him and he accepted it. It was a frank and normal discussion. »
Before concluding: “It is high time that you leave Cristiano Ronaldo alone in the name of what he has done for Portuguese football. »