If I were forced to choose the two greatest footballers of our time, my choices would be Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. If reduced to one, I would choose Messi. But that does not diminish Ronaldo.
Portugal’s greatest goalscorer deserves something comparable to the respect and appreciation Argentina has shown Messi as his international journey approaches its end.
That is why Ronaldo’s angry departure from Portugal’s camp troubles me. This is not the send-off he deserves – but neither is this how a superstar and role model is expected to behave.
Thierry Henry captured one side of the dilemma. Speaking on RMC’s *Rothen s’enflamme*, the former France and Arsenal striker refused to judge Ronaldo’s entire career by this episode. “Do we judge an entire career based on this?” he asked. “Impossible.”
I agree. After more than two decades representing Portugal, captaining them to Euro 2016 glory and becoming international football’s record goalscorer, Ronaldo’s place in history is secure. One ugly ending cannot erase an extraordinary book.
But Ronaldo also has responsibility for how that book ends. After Jorge Jesus left him unused against Norway, despite having him warm up, Ronaldo was visibly unhappy and subsequently left the national-team camp.
Jesus, speaking at Portugal’s media conference, defended his authority while rejecting suggestions that Ronaldo had refused to train. “There are players with status,” he told reporters, “but the rules are the same for everyone.” That principle is difficult to challenge. A coach must be allowed to coach, even when the player sitting on his bench is Cristiano Ronaldo.
Zlatan Ibrahimović has been much harsher. In remarks widely reported by European sports media, the former Sweden captain warned that Ronaldo should not allow ego to destroy the legacy he has built, reportedly describing his departure as “disrespectful” and adding: “Even lions know when the hunt is over.”
Ronaldo’s recent international scoring record shows that he can still contribute. The question is no longer whether he can score; it is whether he can accept that Portugal may sometimes be better served by somebody else starting.
Portugal then supplied an uncomfortable answer of their own. Without Ronaldo, they beat Denmark 4–2. It would be dishonest to claim Portugal suddenly started winning because he left – they had already beaten Wales and Norway.
But after Denmark, Vitinha told reporters that Portugal had produced their best performance under Jesus and taken “a step forward in attack.” The result does not prove Portugal are better without Ronaldo. It proves they can be very good without him. His goals remain valuable; his indispensability is disappearing.
And this episode does not exist in isolation. At Manchester United in 2022, Ronaldo left Old Trafford early after refusing to come on against Tottenham, according to Erik ten Hag. Weeks later, speaking to Piers Morgan, Ronaldo said he did not respect Ten Hag because the manager did not respect him.
Then came Qatar. After Ronaldo reacted angrily to being substituted against South Korea, Portugal coach Fernando Santos told reporters: “I didn’t like it, not at all.” Santos subsequently benched him against Switzerland; Portugal won 6–1. Four years later, another coach benches him, another controversy erupts, and Portugal again wins.
Bruno Fernandes perhaps offers the wisest middle ground. Speaking at Portugal’s media conference after personally talking to Ronaldo, he said Cristiano would “never cease to be the greatest symbol of our national team, of our football, and of the country,” while urging Portugal not to divide itself over the dispute. That is exactly right. Portugal does not need Team Ronaldo and Team Jesus.
Ronaldo deserves honour, but not entitlement. Jesus deserves authority, but that authority should not become a humiliation of a national icon. Portugal should find a way to give Ronaldo the farewell his extraordinary service deserves.
Ronaldo, in return, must remember that millions watch not only how he scores, but how he responds when a coach tells him no. Role models behave.
Perhaps Henry and Ibrahimović are ultimately making complementary arguments: Henry asks us not to let this episode destroy our memory of Ronaldo; Ibrahimović warns Ronaldo not to destroy it himself.
Portugal owes Cristiano Ronaldo gratitude, and Cristiano Ronaldo owes Portugal composure. No footballer is bigger than his national team – not Pelé, Maradona, Messi or Ronaldo. Accepting that may be Ronaldo’s final act of greatness.
Let’s remind Ronaldo that he is a legend. How do legends behave? They can be angry, disappointed or provoked – they are human. But greatness is also knowing how to manage those emotions: how to win without arrogance, lose without losing dignity, and disagree without becoming destructive.
The bigger the name, the greater the responsibility. Perhaps Ronaldo’s final lesson to millions who admire him should be not how to score another goal, but how a legend handles the painful moment when the game begins to move on.
