Cristiano Ronaldo started for Portugal against Wales in the UEFA Nations League before making way for Gonçalo Ramos.
The substitution came 25 minutes before the final whistle, and it followed a glaring miss. Ronaldo had blazed over the bar early in the second half with the goal at his mercy.
He did eventually find the net, only for the effort to be chalked off for offside.
After the match, Ronaldo took to social media: "The first step is done. Come on, Portugal."
The newspaper "A Bola" carried Jorge Jesus's explanation for why he hauled off the Portugal captain.
Jesus said of Ronaldo's withdrawal: "This is what the circumstances of the match demanded. There were 25 minutes left, and I needed a player with the energy to press, like Ramos."
"Perhaps technically he did not have the same quality as Cristiano, but I knew that Gonçalo Ramos would give us more speed on the defensive side. And that is what he did," he continued.
"By bringing on Gonçalo Ramos, I tried to limit the opponent's attacking pressure, and to prevent the opposing team's centre-backs from stepping up and building their attacks comfortably," he added.
Jesus also admitted he had spotted a dip in tempo and intensity from some of his midfielders, Rúben Neves among them.
João Palhinha's introduction, he explained, was designed to shore things up and restore tactical balance. The opponents were exploiting the spaces behind Rúben Dias with a second striker, so Jesus wanted a player with physical strength and aerial dominance to plug those gaps and lock down the defence until the final whistle.