Portugal have denied claims former Manchester United ace Cristiano Ronaldo threatened to leave the World Cup after being dropped to the bench by manager Fernando Santos.
The 37-year-old was named among the substitutes for Portugal's Round of 16 victory over Switzerland, with the veteran frontman coming on late in the tie. His replacement Goncalo Ramos justified his manager's decision by bagging a brilliant hat-trick in the 6-1 victory.
Ronaldo was criticised by Santos for his reaction to being substituted in the group stage defeat to South Korea, and he headed straight down the tunnel after the full-time whistle on Wednesday night, rather than staying on the pitch to celebrate with his teammates.
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Record claimed that Ronaldo got into a heated row with Santos and threatened to leave the World Cup entirely, but the Portuguese FA have since released a statement denying the report.
"News released on Thursday claims Cristiano Ronaldo threatened to leave the national team during a conversation with national coach Fernando Santos," read the statement. "The FPF wants to clarify that at no time did national team captain Cristiano Ronaldo threaten to leave the national team during the tournament in Qatar.
"Cristiano Ronaldo continues to build on his unique record of service to the national team, which should be respected and which attests to his unquestionable degree of commitment to the national team."
The statement added: "The national team – players, coaches and the FPF structure – are fully committed and enthusiastic, as has been the case since day one, to building what we hope will be Portugal’s best ever World Cup."
Ronaldo had his United contract terminated following his explosive interview with Piers Morgan, in which he criticised the club and said he would 'never respect' manager Erik ten Hag.
Portugal are back in World Cup action on Saturday when they face off against Morocco in the quarter-final. It remains to be seen if Santos will stick with Ramos, or restore Ronaldo to the starting line-up.
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