Jorge Jesus did not back down.

The Portugal head coach used his pre-match press conference in Copenhagen on Wednesday to insist he had not fallen out with Cristiano Ronaldo over the forward’s unused substitute role in the 2-1 Nations League win over Norway. By the end of the night, Ronaldo had left the squad.

“There was no incident whatsoever,” Jesus told reporters in Copenhagen.

“It seems like there was an issue between us, but there was no issue. I’m the one who makes the decisions and everybody knows that,” he said.

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The 72-year-old reached for his own playing days to explain the Norway bench call.

“Any player, and I was a player myself, when you spend 20 or 30 minutes warming up and then don’t get on, no one is happy about that.”

Then he closed the door.

“I can promise whatever I want, I’m the coach. No player will ever make a decision for me.”

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Jesus also pushed back on suggestions in the Portuguese press that Ronaldo had refused training in the preceding days. He said the player had been doing individual mobility and strengthening work and had not refused anything.

Ronaldo blames the press conference

Hours later, Ronaldo posted on Instagram. The 41-year-old captain tied his exit directly to Jesus’s words.

“Following the national team manager’s press conference, and after a conversation with the President of the Portuguese Football Federation, I decided to leave the national team’s training camp,” he wrote.

He said he would explain the reasons behind his departure in due course and wished his teammates luck.

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Ronaldo left the Portugal camp before the scheduled eve-of-match training on Wednesday evening and travelled on from Denmark that night.

He had been an unused substitute in Oslo on Sunday, warming up on the touchline for 20 to 30 minutes without coming on. Gonçalo Ramos scored the winner. In the days that followed, Ronaldo did not join full squad sessions, instead working in the gym on individual exercises, according to Al Jazeera.

Portuguese Football Federation president Pedro Proença travelled to Copenhagen in an attempt to defuse the row. He met Jesus and Ronaldo for emergency talks. The player left anyway.

Ramos set to start against Denmark

Jesus has coached Ronaldo before. The 72-year-old managed the forward at Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr before taking the Portugal job. The shared history did not soften his tone on Wednesday.

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Ronaldo remains Portugal’s record goalscorer with 146 goals and most-capped player with 234 appearances. Those numbers turned a selection row into a national story within hours of the Instagram post.

Jesus confirmed that Ramos would start against Denmark if everything went to plan. Portugal face Denmark at Parken tonight.

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