Summary: Manchester United - Sherif Tiraspol 0:3 (Sport1)
Two videos from the training camp of the Portugal national team made a lot of noise on social media in the last two days.
In the first one, Cristiano Ronaldo apparently receives a particularly cold handshake from Bruno Fernandes.
In the second, Joao Cancelo pushed Ronaldo who tries to approach him in training, and his body language is apparently very hostile.
The fans watching from the sidelines in these photos have no doubts - the Portuguese captain's scandalous interview with Piers Morgan about his situation at Manchester United also damaged the atmosphere in the team, and his huge ego now also threatens its chances of succeeding in the World Cup.
is that so?
The Portuguese report a completely different reality.
The "incident" with Bruno is explained by the fact that Ronaldo made a joke at the expense of his Manchester United colleague who arrived late, and therefore squeezed out a somewhat cold and cynical response.
Joao Mario told this, and Fernandez responded on Instagram saying: "You're ruining all the headlines."
As for Cancelo, a slightly longer video reveals that the Manchester City defender was angry with Joao Felix, and Cristiano approached him in an attempt to calm him down - and didn't exactly succeed in the task.
Who is the evil one here? (Photo: GettyImages, David S. Bustamante)
When you look at these events from the right angle, a completely different picture emerges of a completely healthy squad.
Ronaldo does not embody here the haughty evil scrupulousness, but rather looks like an ordinary player.
He jokes with other players, but they don't have to react the way he expects them to.
He takes responsibility to put out small fires in training, but he is not necessarily listened to.
Other players react to him naturally, and do not see him as a dictator.
Fernandez and Cancelo, as well as their other friends, have a routine relationship with him.
The interview doesn't really move them, certainly not those who don't belong to the Red Devils squad.
And really, why should the striker's anger at his current club somehow affect the Portugal team?
Coach Fernando Santos addressed this at the last press conference and stated: "It is not relevant. I have been working here since 2014, and every day I have several questions about Cristiano Ronaldo. This time he chose to give an interview, as other players also do. These are personal things, and they have no contacted us. As far as I know, he did not talk about the national team. These are issues that bother him, and he should be respected. We do not see it as something essential - on the contrary. He talked about other issues, and I am interested in what he says here about us and our preparations for the cup The world. The timing doesn't bother me at all. I don't care about it."
Santos knows very well that professionally the situation is different compared to the previous tournaments.
This time, in complete contrast to the past, many commentators in the Portuguese media doubt the necessity of Ronaldo in the lineup, and some believe that the team will function better without him.
They see how he was blamed for Manchester United's tactical problems last season when the goals were still flowing, and how the Red Devils are performing better without him in Erik ten Haag's line-up this season.
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"These are personal things and have nothing to do with us."
Fernando Santos (Photo: Reuters)
A similar problem can also be identified in the national uniform, because Ronaldo does not apply enough pressure without the ball, while the attacking game must be built on supplying him with the ball into the area, and this does not necessarily serve the technical and creative stars of the rotation, led by Bernardo Silva.
It is possible that the team game will be looser and more flexible if he remains on the bench, therefore in some circles the coach is accused of being fixed, and also of not having the courage or desire to confront the captain, because his reaction to removing him from the team will not be pleasant at all.
On the other hand, is it really right to give up the national team's top scorer in the entire history of the game.
Ronaldo has 117 goals in 191 games for Portugal, his experience in these positions is enormous, and his conduct has always been egocentric.
He has been pulling the blanket in his direction since he officially became a superstar sometime around 2007, and the team is used to performing under these conditions.
Although his contribution will be reduced this time, he still has distinct advantages, and in Portugal his principle commitment to team play has always been greater than in his teams.
In practice, the result did not necessarily reflect the intentions, and the ego often hid everything, but this is the face of Portugal in his time - for better or for worse.
Now there are those who fear that the phenomenon will be more destructive than before because Ronaldo will try to "market himself" in preparation for leaving Manchester United, because all bridges were completely burned during the interview, but it is worth remembering that the two previous tournaments were also conducted in preparation for his transitions.
In 2018, Ronaldo announced his departure from Real Madrid for Juventus just hours before the World Cup semi-final between France and Belgium, forcing countless journalists in the St. Petersburg stadium to write about him on their laptops instead of preparing for the game.
He left the old lady for Old Trafford in August 2021, shortly after the European Championship ended.
In both cases, Portugal was eliminated in the round of 16, but was the failure due to Ronaldo's desire to change clubs?
Would the reality have been different if he had enjoyed industrial peace in this sector?
Of course, no one will be able to provide an unequivocal answer to this.
Won't get out of concentration?
Ronaldo (Photo: Reuters)
One thing is certain - Portugal is already used to it, and the situation should certainly not distract the rest of the players.
On the other hand, the media frenzy surrounding the captain who is currently being attacked very harshly in the British media, when his picture is demonstratively removed from the walls of Old Trafford, may act to consolidate the ranks around him.
Santos will act wisely if he takes advantage of the situation to create the feeling of "the whole world against us" when Fernandez and Cancelo are used on social media to slam Ronaldo for not being unjust.
Jose Mourinho was a tremendous lift in the field at his peak in the first decade of the millennium, and in general this mentality is really not foreign to the Portuguese.
They really like being the underdog, and respond with increased motivation to emergency situations.
Ronaldo Agumaniak?
This is really not new, and Portugal has somehow lived with it for a long time.
Ronaldo in trouble?
This is already quite unusual, and here lies the opportunity to unite around him to do the maximum and a little more in order to organize a tournament for him to retire from the movies.
If he himself accepted the limitations and moved a little to the side to allow the other stars to breathe freely, this would be very useful - but this is utopia, and there is no reason to take this possibility seriously.
The point is that the team is theoretically able to excel even within the existing limitations, and the hot interview can give it a lot of fuel.
He does not divide the staff but actually unites it.
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FIFA World Cup
Tags
Cristiano Ronaldo
Portugal national team
World Cup 2022