Cristiano Ronaldo causes split in Portugal camp

Cristiano Ronaldo is once again making headlines.

The 41-year-old is one of the greatest footballers to have ever graced the game, but is no longer able to carry teams on his own back and is experiencing a shift in his impact.

How he is dealing with it is coming into question.

A day before Portugal’s UEFA Nations League game against Denmark, Ronaldo made the shock decision to leave the national setup.

It came after he was subbed off in a disappointing showing against Wales, where the former Manchester United player hindered rather than helped his team.

Speaking to talkSPORT, Portuguese journalist Miguel Pereira revealed that the 41-year-old is now splitting opinion in Portugal’s camp.

“It’s a very tense situation because I do think that the players like Bruno Fernandes, like Bernardo, they think that Portugal should be doing better on the international stage,” Pereira revealed. “And they do think that Cristiano Ronaldo is not making any favours to them by pressing to play all the time.

“They are happy to have him with them. They are happy to have him helping from the bench, which would be the sound decision for all parties.

“But in the end, the insistence that he has to be all the time the hero of the equation has created a sort of divide in the camp between those older players who think their time is going to pass and they will miss the opportunity to win something big for Portugal.

“And those very younger players who have only known him as an icon, as a global icon.

“So for them, it’s very hard to look at him and see the man, see the football player and see the guy who’s on the pitch.”

It’s a difficult situation for Portugal and all players involved.

As Pereira mentions, the footballer who has always been so influential now halting his national side’s progress is evident to see, but the former Manchester United star is clearly vying to score his 1000th career goal in a game for his beloved nation.

United’s current players in Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot will have their own personal opinions, but it appears Jorge Jesus’s setup is conflicted.