The Sporting Coach Spoke About Cristiano Ronaldo’s Retirement

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The words of the Sporting coach

"Cristiano Ronaldo will say goodbye to the Portuguese national team as he wishes and sees fit," said Sporting coach Rui Borges on Thursday, who also praised the "soccer greatness" of the Lisbon club's most famous academy player.

At a press conference, Rui Borges declined to comment on the disagreements between Cristiano and the Portugal head coach, Jorge Jesus, stating that he has "neither the ability nor the right to do so." He instead praised the striker's stature, not only at Sporting but also globally

"As for Cristiano Ronaldo's greatness, it's not limited to Sporting; it's on a global scale. We don't even begin to understand what Ronaldo means to the whole world," he said.

He added: "I feel incredibly proud to have enjoyed and to continue to enjoy his footballing greatness."

Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, came through Sporting's youth academy during his childhood and took his first steps as a professional with the Lisbon team.

In his honor, the club's sports center is named the 'Cristiano Ronaldo Academy,' and at the José Alvalade Stadium, the player's image appears on entrance gate number 7, his shirt number.

Also commenting on the controversy surrounding Cristiano was his mother, Dolores Aveiro, who, in an interview with a local magazine, said she was "sad" about a situation that "was a shock."

"My son could have gone out through the big door, but instead he went out through the small one. But that's okay; God will take care of it (...) He has always been Portugal's hero. They're not appreciating him as they should," Aveiro told 'TV 7 Dias'.

Cristiano Ronaldo abruptly left the national team on September 30 due to disagreements with Jorge Jesus, after not being selected for the match against Norway in Oslo on September 27 (1-2).

According to a statement from the former Real Madrid player, the reason for the disagreement was that Jesus made the Al Nassr striker warm up for half an hour and then didn't bring him on.

"I was warming up since halftime. I watched the minutes go by, and they didn't call me on. The coach hadn't kept his word," Cristiano wrote in his statement. EFE

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