Jesus to reunite with Ronaldo as Portugal coach
Jorge Jesus has been confirmed as Portugal's new head coach and he has vowed to pick Cristiano Ronaldo if the veteran star forward elects to continue his Portugal career.
Ronaldo's hopes of lifting the FIFA World Cup appear to be over after Portugal was beaten 1-0 by Spain in the Round of 16, which proved to be former coach Roberto Martinez's final game in charge.
Ronaldo will be 45 by the time the 2030 tournament rolls around, with Portugal co-hosting alongside Spain and Morocco.
He confirmed before the Spain defeat that this year's FIFA World Cup would be his last but insisted he would not make any "rash decisions" on his international future, with some suggesting he could continue at least until UEFA Euro 2028.
After being announced as Martinez's successor, Jesus, who won the Saudi Pro League title with Ronaldo at Al-Nassr last season, hit out at the striker's critics.
"I haven't spoken to Cristiano yet. He will never be a problem for the national team, or for me," he said at his unveiling.
"Regarding the controversy, everyone can think what they want. When I have to make a decision, I'll talk to Cristiano and everyone else individually.
"Cristiano is a symbol of Portugal. He will go down in history, and I got great pleasure from working with him. It's very easy to work with him.
"But I have to talk to him, to know what he wants to do. He always told me he wants to end his career at Al-Nassr. If I am able to call him up, I will do so."
Martinez was fiercely criticised for sticking with Ronaldo throughout Portugal's ill-fated 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign, as he played 441 minutes, the second-most of any outfielder in its squad after ever-present defender Renato Veiga (450).
But Jesus insists there will never be any pressure on him to pick Ronaldo, citing the fact that he substituted the five-time Ballon d'Or winner on 13 of his 30 Saudi Pro League appearances last season, although the striker did average 87 minutes per game under him in all competitions.
"Last year, we never confused that he is a player, and I am the coach," Jesus said.
"Egos exist in all teams. It is more difficult to work with those who think they are great players than with those who are really good players.
"This is the case in the national team. They are all great players for the best teams in Europe, who win titles. We are here to win titles, and everyone will have to pay a price.
"The team has a lot of quality, and I believe in everyone. New players will appear in the next four years, and now I will be more involved in the evolution of youth football.
"Only six players are over 30 years old, and two of them are goalkeepers. It's not an old team; they have an average age of 28, the best period for a player."
Jesus also added that if Ronaldo elects to continue playing, he will be part of an initial five-man leadership group, alongside Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, Ruben Dias and Diogo Dalot.
"As for the captains, there are five: Cristiano, Bernardo, Bruno, Ruben and Diogo. I don't know what the order is," Jesus added.
"I am not used to the number of years with the team influencing who is captain – the captain is much more than that. The captain is the maximum exponent of the coach's thinking."
Jesus's first games in charge will be in the UEFA Nations League, as an extended international break in late September and early October sees Portugal face Norway twice, Wales and Denmark.
