Portugese professional footballer and superstar, Cristiano Ronaldo has released a statement explaining why he left the national team camp.

In a lengthy personal statement released on X on Tuesday, the 41-year-old captain gave his full account of the events that led to his exit from the Portugal national team camp and accused coach Jorge Jesus of breaking his word on two occasions.

“This is the truth about what has happened with Jorge Jesus.

“As I promised, I decided to recount, in the first person and directly, the circumstances surrounding the last training camp of the National Team.

“After the 2026 World Cup, I prepared a letter to the Portuguese people, which I still keep, with the words I want to address to them when I leave our team for good,” he explained.

Ronaldo further explained that after the 2026 World Cup he had prepared a farewell letter to the Portuguese people.

The Federation president, Pedro Proença, urged him to continue, and Ronaldo backed Jesus as the new coach.

“I told the President of the Federation that, in my opinion, it would be the right choice,” he wrote. “That is why, on the day the current head coach was presented, I was genuinely happy with the choice. It was the right option, as the results are confirming.”

Jesus later met Ronaldo and outlined a plan. “He told me he was counting on me and that my presence was fundamental to his project. He presented me, right there, with a plan for my participation. He told me I would play the first match and the last one, and that for reasons of physical management he would always make three to four changes per match.”

It was suggested that Ronaldo skip the Norway and Denmark trips, but he rejected it.

“I refused this proposal immediately. It seemed obvious to me that I could not accept it. It was not because I would not play the matches abroad that I would stop captaining our team. That privilege of staying in Portugal would not be a good example.”

Ronaldo played against Wales, was substituted, and handed the armband to Bruno Fernandes without complaint. On the day of the Norway match, however, the plan changed.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner claims in his statement that Jesus had told him he would play 30 minutes against Norway on the day of the game, only to go back on his word.

“To my absolute surprise, the coach asked me if I was fit to play 30 minutes. I was fully focused on my physical recovery… Without any problem. This request was something outside my physical recovery and training plan — because I was only going to play on the 4th at the Dragão — but of course I said yes. He replied that I should then be ready because I would play 30 minutes.

“The rest everyone knows. I warmed up from half-time, watched the minutes go by, and was not called. The coach had broken his word to me.”

Ronaldo apologised for not greeting the fans after the game, calling it “a failure that is only my responsibility.”

A later private meeting with Jesus and Al Nassr sporting director Simão Coutinho produced what Ronaldo described as an agreement: Jesus would publicly clarify the situation in the next press conference. Ronaldo said a short list of points was prepared and validated. The actual conference, he claimed, did not match what had been agreed.

“It was the second time that he was breaking the word he had given me. I decided to leave the camp without waiting for any further breach of word. For me, the truth is still the most important thing in relationships between people.”

Ronaldo apologised to his teammates and to the Portuguese public, accepted that the federation should punish the walkout without mitigating factors, and stressed that “the rules are equal for everyone.”

The forward, who is his country’s record appearance holder and goalscorer, also said he hopes his international career will not be limited to simply playing in a farewell game for Portugal.

“When I think about the national team, what I really think about is competing. Therefore, if I am physically well, playing at my club, scoring goals, I hope, after serving the suspension that is applied to me, I will be available, as I always have been until today, to compete and win for our National Team.

“This is, believe me, the purest of truths.”

Addressing the uncertainty over his Portugal future, the Al Nassr forward said in a statement on Instagram: “If I am physically well, playing for my club, with goals, I hope, after serving the suspension that may be applied to me, I will be available, as I have always been until today, to compete and win for our national team.”

Recall that Ronaldo left the national team squad in Copenhagen on the eve of a Nations League fixture against Denmark after he was an unused substitute for a 2-1 win away to Norway on September 27.