Cristiano Ronaldo offers to return to Portugal after apologising for walkout

Cristiano Ronaldo has made himself available for a possible return to the Portugal squad and apologised for leaving the team’s training camp, while accusing manager Jorge Jesus of twice breaking his word.

“I will be available, as I have always been until today, to compete and win for our national team,” Ronaldo said in a statement on Tuesday.

The 41-year-old left the squad after being left on the bench for Portugal’s Nations League match against Norway. Before the following game against Denmark, Jesus told Ronaldo he would not start, prompting the forward to leave camp.

Ronaldo apologised to his team-mates for his decision.

“I owe an apology to my national team teammates for having left the camp,” he wrote. “Despite the absolute breakdown of trust in the head coach’s word… I shouldn’t have done it. The responsibility is mine alone.”

The Portugal captain also said sorry to supporters but defended the reasons behind his actions.

“I apologise to the Portuguese people once again, but a broken word has, for me, a defining impact,” he said.

“I felt that, from that moment on, my presence would only harm the group, and I did what I always said I would do if I didn’t feel useful: I picked up my bags and left.”

Dispute over playing agreement

Ronaldo said Jesus had initially outlined a plan for the international window in which he would start the first and last matches at home, but would not travel for the Nations League fixtures in Norway and Denmark.

The former Real Madrid and Manchester United forward rejected the proposal because he believed it would send the wrong message for the captain to stay in Portugal while his team-mates travelled.

Before the Norway match, Ronaldo said Jesus unexpectedly asked whether he was fit enough to play for 30 minutes. He agreed and began warming up at half-time, but was not introduced.

“The head coach failed to keep his word to me,” said Ronaldo, Portugal’s most capped player and record goalscorer.

Ronaldo said he later spoke to Jesus and agreed that the manager would apologise during a news conference before the Denmark game. However, he claimed the press conference did not reflect what they had discussed and included an “aggressiveness” he had never previously experienced from the coach.

“It was the second time he failed to keep his word. I decided to leave the camp without waiting for any further broken promises,” Ronaldo wrote.

He said he would accept any punishment imposed by the Portuguese Football Federation and recognised that his conduct should have consequences.

“The consequence of this act of mine must be assessed and punished by the Portuguese Football Federation,” he said.

“I understand that the punishment should not have mitigating circumstances. I’m not just any player, I’m the team captain, and that is an aggravating factor.”

Portugal won all four of their Nations League matches and secured a place in the quarter-finals with two games still to play.