Jorge Jesus has denied any crisis with his star man Cristiano Ronaldo, dismissing the talk as "a non-existent issue".
Portugal's manager spoke on Wednesday at a press conference ahead of tomorrow's clash with Denmark in the third round of the UEFA Nations League: "There is so much being said about this in Portugal, to the point that I do not understand what is happening. But there was nothing to discuss."
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Jesus added: "They, the Portuguese media, basically forced me to talk with Cristiano, about a situation that never existed at all."
He went on: "I said to Cristiano: there is so much being said about this in Portugal... and Cristiano said to me: I am here for you to decide. If you want me to play, I will play. And if you do not want me to play, I will not play. And if you want me in the stands, I will go to the stands."
"We had already sorted everything out after dinner," Jesus continued. "There was not even a problem."
"Refusing to train"
Had the Al-Nassr star refused to train? Jesus was clear: "No, he did not refuse to train. Cristiano trained in the gym, did movement exercises on the pitch, and then underwent muscle-strengthening exercises at the hotel."
He added: "That is exactly what happened. And today he will train, come and watch the training session and you will see him. And I am not talking only about Cristiano: do you really think a player in the national team can refuse to train? Not just in Portugal, but in any national team. This is what I wanted to make clear."
The comments followed talk of Ronaldo's anger at being left out of Sunday's 2-1 win over Norway in the second round of the UEFA Nations League.
"The Don" played no part in Oslo, not even from the bench, and skipped training with his teammates on Monday and Tuesday. Jesus had explained before the fixture that he was planning to bring him on, but that a start was unlikely.
At the final whistle, Ronaldo headed straight from the substitutes' bench to the tunnel. He did not join his teammates in saluting the travelling Portuguese fans.



