Bernardo Silva insists Cristiano Ronaldo's controversial interview is not impacting Portugal's World Cup preparations, as he brushed off questions about his international teammate.
Manchester City forward Bernardo and Manchester United icon Ronaldo are Premier League rivals but international colleagues and are both expected to play important roles for Portugal at the Qatar World Cup, which begins this weekend.
However, back in Manchester, Ronaldo's TV interview with Piers Morgan has sent shockwaves through United, who are considering terminating the contract of their number seven for possible breach of contract.
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That hasn't affected the Portugal camp, though, as Bernardo said the mood among the squad in Qatar is "top, top, top".
He told a press conference: "The news that comes from England has nothing to do with the Selecao [Portugal squad]. It doesn't concern me, it concerns Cristiano. I don't have to comment.
“It’s a matter for Cristiano, I’m not a Manchester United player and even if I was I would not answer that, because we’re in the national team so I’m not going to talk about it. We're focused on the national team and not on Cristiano's club. I see him motivated, focused on our national team and he's one more to help our national team."
Bernardo was also asked about a potential rift between United duo Bruno Fernandes and Ronaldo, with a video appearing to show a frosty exchange when the pair met up for the first time after Ronaldo's interview.
Fernandes has since downplayed the video, and Bernardo has confirmed that there is “no weird environment” between Fernandes and Ronaldo - despite the latter failing to include his compatriot among the United teammates he admires when dismantling the club in his chat with Morgan.
Bernardo said: “I don’t see any weird environment between Cristiano and Bruno. It’s something that belongs to Cristiano. It’s a personal matter and I don’t see a big deal out of it. There’s no weird environment. It’s a shame we’ve only been talking about this when we have a World Cup to play. I don’t see a big issue.”
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