Gonçalo Ramos has scored in three consecutive matches for Portugal. Cristiano Ronaldo has been provisionally suspended by the Portuguese Football Federation and is awaiting a disciplinary hearing. The post-Ronaldo era that Portuguese football has debated for a decade arrived, in effect, in two weeks.
Ramos settled a tight 2-1 win over Norway in Porto on October 4, stabbing in a close-range finish from João Félix’s lay-off to send Portugal through to the Nations League quarter-finals in March 2027. The win made it four from four in Group A4 for Jorge Jesus’s side, with Portugal also beating Denmark 4-2 three days earlier.
The 25-year-old had scored in both matches of the international break by the time the Norway game ended. He has scored in every start since replacing Ronaldo in the starting lineup.
Ronaldo suspended after Copenhagen walkout
Ronaldo left the national team camp the day before the Denmark match after learning he would not start, according to Al Jazeera. The 41-year-old issued a lengthy statement in which he accused Jesus of breaking his word over promised playing time earlier in the camp.
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The federation opened disciplinary proceedings on October 9 and announced the provisional suspension a day later. Under FPF rules, the potential penalty for abandoning a national team call-up without justification ranges from one to six months.
Ronaldo also issued an apology, in which he accepted responsibility for leaving his teammates and for failing to greet supporters after the Norway match.
Jesus has denied that any agreement over playing time was made and has publicly left the door open.
“If he wants to, he’ll return to the national team,” the manager said.
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Jesus’s side keeps winning
Portugal are unbeaten in Group A4 with four wins from four and still have Denmark and Norway to play in November to close out the league phase.
The question of how Portugal replaces Ronaldo has shadowed Jesus’s predecessors for years. Ramos, born in Olhão, has given Jesus a concrete answer in the two matches since the walkout: run the channels, finish inside the box, score the kind of close-range goals Portugal used to wait on Ronaldo to deliver.
Dressing-room reaction has stayed loyal to the captain. “Cristiano is our captain, the best player Portugal has ever had,” João Cancelo told reporters after the Norway win. “Things will certainly end in the best way, but the important thing is the four victories.”
Denmark on November 14
Portugal’s disciplinary case against Ronaldo will play out in private under FPF procedure, with the length of any ban determined by the federation’s investigation. The Nations League quarter-finals are scheduled for March 2027. Portugal’s next fixture is against Denmark on November 14.
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