Jorge Jesus has vowed that the Cristiano Ronaldo saga will not “divide” him after he claimed that Portugal won without the record goalscorer in their 4-2 win over Denmark in Copenhagen.
Ronaldo was sensationally pulled out of the team this week after an altercation with Jesus, which appears to have ended his international career.
An apparent breakdown in the relationship between Jesus and Ronaldo overshadowed the build-up to Thursday’s UEFA Nations League game in Copenhagen, but it had no effect on Portugal’s excellent attacking display.
Portugal took the lead in the 13th minute through Joao Cancelo, who beat Norway 2-1 with a disgruntled Ronaldo on the bench.
Mikkel Damsgaard equalized 10 minutes later with a superb curling strike, only for Goncalo Ramos to put Portugal ahead again shortly after.
Rasmus Hojlund equalized for the second time eight minutes into the second half for Denmark, but Vitinha’s first goal for Portugal restored the lead, before Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr team-mate Joao Felix added a fourth late on to secure their third win from three games for the Nations League champions.
Portugal next face Norway in Porto on Sunday in the final match of the long international break and Jesus has revealed that the squad will remain united despite the setback of the Ronaldo episode.
When asked whether he was behind the players, Isa told Sport TV: “There is no reason why they should not be behind me.
“The main thing is what we have to do. I know why you’re asking this question, but things happen – they don’t divide the team and they won’t divide us.”
Vitinha greets Jesus after Portugal’s latest victory
Speaking to RTP, Vitinha backed up his coach’s comments, praising Jesus for his impact in his excellent start to the Nations League.
“Because of the coach’s work,” Vitinha said when asked about the improvements made in Jesus’ first three games.
“The truth is we played a great game – there’s no denying that. It’s very difficult to win here. We learned that lesson last year or two years ago. We lost and it was really difficult. Don’t be fooled by the result. More than the result, it was a performance. It was our best game ever.
“We’ve improved in the last three games. The more time we spend with the coach, the more we absorb his ideas and develop a more dynamic game. Defensively we’ve always been strong and skilled. We’ve taken a step forward in attack. I hope we can continue that way. It was a very difficult win. It’s important to say this – it was a great game to win.
“The coach’s work is starting to pay off. You see, it was clear today. Fortunately, things are going well and we want to keep it going. Now we just have to tell everyone to pack Dragao so that we can make it four wins in a row, which would be perfect.”
On the Ronaldo situation, Vitinya added: “We tried to stay out of it. We focused on the game and we succeeded. We responded incredibly well. So congratulations to the whole team.”