Neville Criticizes Ronaldo’s Behaviour After Explosive Portugal Fallout

Manchester United legend Gary Neville has launched a scathing critique of Cristiano Ronaldo following the veteran forward’s explosive fallout from the Portugal national team camp over the international break.

Ronaldo stormed out of the Portugal setup after claiming that manager Jorge Jesus broke a promise regarding his playing time. The 41-year-old was left as an unused substitute during Portugal’s 2-1 Nations League victory over Norway despite being fully fit, reportedly leading to a dramatic exit and a potential lengthy suspension from international football.

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Speaking on The Overlap Daily, former Manchester United teammate Gary Neville admitted that while his affection for Ronaldo makes criticism difficult, the forward’s petulant behavior cannot be ignored.

“My view was that I would never criticise Ole Gunnar Solskjær because he conducted himself with great class, whether he was winning or losing,” Neville said.

“With Cristiano, it’s difficult because I love him, but I can’t watch what happened at United in his second period and then see him make a statement like that without saying something. He has to be pulled up on that and told that it isn’t acceptable.”

Neville highlighted how immense wealth, unprecedented achievements, and global power can create an unhealthy sense of immunity for elite athletes, making them believe they can dictate terms to national federations and managers.

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“The problem is, who is going to tell him? He isn’t going to listen to me or you, but I can’t approve of that statement or pretend it was a good thing to do,” Neville added. “If you love Ronaldo, it makes him more difficult to like; if you don’t like him, it makes you dislike him even more.”

Praising Jorge Jesus for maintaining his authority, Neville concluded: “When you have a billion pounds in the bank, the achievements he has had and the power he has, you feel you’re unbreakable, you feel you’re unstoppable. You think you can dictate to a federation or a manager what they should say. I’m glad the manager stood his ground. If he had read those eight points out, he would have lost a lot of his soul.”