Ronaldo departure opens door: BVB striker Fabio Silva steps in | OneFootball

Cristiano Ronaldo left the Portugal national team camp early – and that opens a door for BVB striker Fabio Silva. The forward was included in Portugal’s squad from the outset for the four international matches, but was not named in the matchday squad for the first two games. Against Denmark, Silva was included in the squad for the match for the first time. However, he did not feature in the 4–2 win.

Silva had already been called up by national team coach Jorge Jesus for the current international break. The 24-year-old was therefore part of the Portugal squad in principle, but did not make the 23-man matchday squad for the first two games against Norway and Wales.

That changed after Ronaldo’s departure. Following the 2–1 win over Norway, in which he remained on the bench for the full 90 minutes, the superstar left the Portugal camp early due to differences with coach Jorge Jesus over his playing time, and was therefore unavailable for the subsequent clash with Denmark.

Silva was then added to the matchday squad and was able to hope for his second appearance for the senior national team.

Second international appearance in sight

The Dortmund player made his only international appearance to date in November 2024 against Croatia. However, his return to the pitch did not come against Denmark. Jesus opted for other attacking options, and Silva watched Portugal’s entire 4–2 win from the bench.

Photo: IMAGO

There was also a change to the shirt numbers following Ronaldo’s departure. Rafael Leão took over the legendary number seven, while Silva received his previous number 17. The reason for this is UEFA’s Nations League regulations, which stipulate that only shirt numbers one to 23 may be assigned in a match.

Even so, the match against Denmark was a special step for Silva. After two games outside the matchday squad, the BVB striker was included in the squad for a match in the current international break for the first time. In the return match against Norway on 4 October, Silva could then make his second international appearance.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.