Portugal savour 4-2 Denmark win as Ronaldo affair rumbles on | OneFootball

Portugal produced a polished 4-2 win in Denmark in the Nations League on Thursday, lifting the mood amid the Ronaldo affair.

Portuguese papers lauded Jorge Jesus’s side the next morning, as Cristiano Ronaldo had left the camp the day before. Porto daily O Jogo led with 'CR11', a nod to CR7 and a team of 11, and said unity, character and talent helped them rise above the captain’s departure controversy. It also noted Ronaldo intended to make a public apology.

Jesus said in his press conference that names do not matter, only the win. Asked if the country was behind him, he said he did not know.

Lisbon-based Record splashed 'Portugolos', a nod to the four 'golos' in Copenhagen, and said the game sat outside the row between coach and captain. It wrote that a new era seemed to have begun as Portugal maintained form in their first match without Ronaldo, the 66th since his August 2003 debut, and that the positive trend continued.

A Bola led with 'High artistic mark' and said the moment demanded a show of strength after events that shook the country. It hailed a win over always-dangerous Denmark, three wins from three, leaving the Seleção well placed for a Nations League quarter-final spot.

Renato Veiga said he is close to Ronaldo and holds great affection for him, but explained the federation had asked him not to discuss the matter in the mixed zone.

Source: L'Équipe

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”