Cristiano Ronaldo breaks silence on Portugal exit

Cristiano Ronaldo breaks silence on Portugal exit Cristiano Ronaldo said he is not retiring from international football in a lengthy social media statement . The 41-year-old’s Portugal future was thrown into doubt after he suddenly left his country’s Nations League camp last week following a rift with his coach Jorge Jesus. Ronaldo apologised for his behaviour, acknowledging he should be held accountable for his actions. The former Manchester United star said he will remain available for international selection, but accused Jesus of breaking his word to him. As per Ronaldo, the Portugal manager had agreed a plan under which the forward would miss the away fixtures against Norway and Denmark. However, on the morning of the Norway game, Jesus told him he would play for half an hour. “Everyone knows the rest. I warmed up from half-time onwards, watched the minutes tick by and wasn’t called ​on,” Ronaldo said. “The manager had broken his ‌word to me.” Ronaldo said a plan was put in place after the Norway match to allow Jesus to clarify events at his next press conference. But the forward claims his coach presented a completely different version of events to the media. Ronaldo has scored 146 goals in 234 appearances for Portugal, helping them win Euro 2016 and the Nations League twice. But at 41, he is no longer the force of nature he once was. The football superstar faced criticism for his performances at the summer World Cup, where Portugal crashed out of the tournament in the last-16. Ronaldo also endured a frustrating outing against Wales in their Nations League opener. He missed a scoring opportunity and was replaced by Joao Palhinha after 67 minutes.