Santos rubbishes rumors about Ronaldo asking to leave Portugal camp

Ahead of their Qatar 2022 quarter-final clash against Morocco, the

coach was dominated by questions in his press conference as he ruled out rumors about an exit request. However, he confirmed

wasn't happy being left out against Switzerland.

Fernando Santos

said:

"We had a conversation. I don't do that with all the players but he's the captain of the squad. You know what he represents for Portuguese football, for the Portuguese people and for the national team.

"It was on the day of the match after lunch. I explained to him why he would not play and said in terms of our strategy 'I think it would be better if you did not start. I think the game will be difficult and I will save you for the second half'.

"Cristiano was obviously not very happy as he has always been a starting player. But we had a normal conversation in which I explained my points and he accepted them. He never told me he wanted to leave the national team. It's high time we stopped with this conversation and look at what he did in the match.

"He warmed up with his colleagues, he celebrated all the goals and he was the one who invited the players to applaud the fans at the end. It's time for you [the media] to leave Cristiano alone. Ninety percent of the questions are about Cristiano."

Ronaldo's replacement,

Goncalo Ramos

scored a hat-trick against Switzerland as he displayed an outstanding performance. However, Santos refused to comment on whether he choose Ramos or Ronaldo against Morocco.

"

Just because a team wins doesn't mean you can't change it,"

he said.

"The team we play on Saturday will present different challenges, they are a very different team to Switzerland.

"They are well-organised with many players who play for the biggest clubs in the world. This will not be an easy game."

Asked if players perform better with Ronaldo out the field with

also shining against Switzerland, Santos said:

"I don't think it's mandatory to pass to Cristiano. We try to pass to the player that's available. 

"Independent of Cristiano being on the field, we have the same tactics, the ones we've been using for all four games. He has skills that other players have and vice-versa. We, as a team, have our own identity and we focus on that."

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