Piers Morgan questions Jorge Jesus’ Portugal future after Ronaldo row

Jorge Jesus has been criticised by Piers Morgan after the Portugal manager made a sarcastic comment about Cristiano Ronaldo following the team’s 4-1 defeat by Denmark in Braga.

Jesus was asked at his post-match news conference whether he missed Ronaldo, the Portugal captain and Al Nassr forward, while the 72-year-old was absent from the squad.

“Miss him? How? He is no longer with the national team, unless he is here to keep me company,” Jesus replied.

Portugal were comfortably beaten by Denmark and failed to match their opponents during the game, prompting Morgan to use the result to question the manager’s comments and his position with the national side.

Morgan responds to Jesus

Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano shared Jesus’ remarks on his official X account, where they attracted considerable reaction.

Morgan then replied directly to the post, criticising the Portugal manager for the way he addressed Ronaldo’s absence.

“This clown won’t be with the national team either if Portugal continue to suffer defeats like today, Saturday,” the English broadcaster wrote.

His comment referred to Portugal’s heavy loss to Denmark and represented a direct attack on Jesus after the manager’s response about Ronaldo.

Morgan also linked Jesus’ future to Portugal’s results, suggesting that continued defeats could eventually lead to him being removed from consideration for the national team set-up. The remark echoed Jesus’ own response about Ronaldo no longer being involved with the squad.

The exchange has renewed the disagreement between Morgan and Jesus, which has developed over the past few weeks around Ronaldo’s absence from Portugal duty.

Morgan has been one of the most prominent defenders of the veteran forward during the dispute. He previously criticised Jesus’ conduct and views regarding Ronaldo, amid the controversy surrounding the circumstances that led to the Al Nassr captain being left out of the national team.

Jesus’ answer after the Denmark match brought Ronaldo’s name back into the discussion despite the forward not taking part in the game. Morgan’s reaction added another public confrontation to the ongoing dispute between the two men.

As a result, the manager’s remark and Morgan’s response became a major part of the reaction to Portugal’s defeat. What began as a question about the absence of the national team captain developed into an open criticism of Jesus and a wider discussion about the manager’s future.

Portugal’s defeat came in the first path of the Nations League, with the team’s next related fixture listed for 17 November 2026 against Wales.