Fernando Santos claims Cristiano Ronaldo 'respected' decision to bench him at 2022 World Cup as ex-Portugal boss remains in contact with five-time Ballon d'Or winner

Santos raised eyebrows by benching his superstar at the 2022 World Cup for Portugal's last-16 clash with Switzerland after admitting he did not like his angry reaction to being substituted against South Korea. Goncalo Ramos went on to score a hat-trick against the Swiss which meant that Ronaldo was also left out of the starting XI for the quarter-final defeat to Morocco as Santos' side were knocked out of the tournament.

The 2022 tournament in Qatar had looked set to be Ronaldo's last chance to lift the World Cup but the forward continues to bang in the goals for Al-Nassr and has returned to the Portugal starting XI under Roberto Martinez. Ronaldo will celebrate his 40th birthday in February but is thought to be keen to play in the 2026 World Cup in North America, Canada and Mexico. Santos, who managed Ronaldo for eight years with Portugal, says the forward "respected" his decision to drop him in Qatar and claims to still be in contact with the Al-Nassr star.

Santos told Egyptian Channel 1, via O Jogo: "Cristiano Ronaldo is a great player and my relationship with him has been good since 2004, before I coached the national team. Ronaldo sitting on the bench when I was Portugal coach was a vision that Cristiano respected and we still communicate."

Ronaldo scored a brace on his last outing for Portugal in November in the Nations League and spoke about his future afterwards. The 39-year-old said when he decides to hang up his international boots he will do it "spontaneously but thoughtfully" and with no "advance announcements." Portugal's next fixture is a Nations League quarter-final against Denmark in March.